7um4n71
by PKClarine
Summary: Jumanji has been destroyed, right? Don't be so sure. It can evolve and it has. But not for the best... for itself and certainly not for the four teenagers that played it last. Follows Jumanji Welcome to the jungle. (Bethany centred but mostly Spencer POV)
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

 **Note:** Hello, I'm back with another Jumanji fic. For "Hold on", I wrote it quite quickly and, even if I enjoyed writing it, I am not fully satisfied with it :). So, I took my time for this one. I hope my English won't be as dry as last time, and that you'll like it.

The story takes place after Jumanji 2. For the plot, the game didn't stay dormant between the first movie and the second. If you remember well, when Alan Parish threw the game in the river, at the end of the first film, it was circled with chains and rocks but it was free when it was shown in the sand. So maybe something happened in between. I included that detail to my timeline.

That said, I didn't read the books (yet ^^) and I'm just based on the movies.

Today is the prologue and the first chapter.

* * *

 **Prologue**

The night was silent and cloudy. Outside Spencer's house all that could be heard were the discrete owls' ululations and the summer breeze playing in the leaves. Inside, the house was just night breathings.

Suddenly, on Spencer's desk, his phone started up and briefly lighted up. Even if he was sleeping soundly, the young man mumbled in his sleep when the initial vibration resonated against the wood of the table. Unaware, he turned in his bed, and hid his head under his pillow. As if the device knew it was now safe to activate itself without being witnessed, the screen flashed a few times before turning dark again. Several seconds later, it finally lighted up again. The interface was completely glitched. Bars of colourful pixels were dancing randomly on the screen, forming a strange mosaic while what seemed like the contact list was scrolling fast in the background. Then, as quick as everything had begun, it froze.

After quite a long period of inactivity, the phone began to emit a distant drumming sound. It wasn't loud but it was clearly audible; at least in Spencer's room. As the rhythmic sound went on, the teenager began to move as if it had caught him in his dream.

Soon, his heart beating fast, he woke up. Breathing hard, he sat up quickly on his bed. During the second of confusion that preceded his full consciousness, he could swear he heard a drum, but it stopped almost instantly, so for a second, he was not sure if it was real or not. He took a deep breath and passed unconsciously his hand in his hair, as he would often do when he was nervous. He couldn't remember what he was dreaming about but it should have been quite a nightmare to wake him up like that. He looked around and then realized that his phone was on. He glanced circumspectly at the slightly glowing device on his desk. He was pretty sure he had shut it down before going to sleep.

So, he got up and approached the table. He frowned when he saw the mess the interface was in. He took the phone and touched the screen. The pixels slid fast. There was something behind. I could almost see a photo. He touched it again and again until he could discern a shape. He squinted eyes and tilted his head. He was in his contact list. The contact picture on which the screen was frozen was almost unrecognisable behind the glitches but he could distinguish blond hair.

\- "Bethany?" he asked out loud, as she was the first person that came in his mind.

He blenched when his phone suddenly vibrated in his hand. Unfortunately, his movement made him drop the device. Reaching again his hair with his hand, he took a deep breath to ease his racing heart. He was way too nervous... Then he sat down at his desk and he watched in disbelief his phone shutting down and slowly restarting. He was pretty sure it was just malfunctioning but a part of him couldn't help thinking about the drumming sound that awoke him and an insidious feeling of dread was gaining him as that reminded him of Jumanji.


	2. Avatars from the past

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

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 **Avatars from the past**

The next day, Spencer couldn't stop thinking about Jumanji and the adventure his friends and himself went through. It was several weeks ago, but that small incident with his phone the night before had put it all back on the table.

So, in the morning, as he walked down to the campus with Fridge, he took the opportunity to ask him:

\- "Do you think we really got rid of Jumanji?"  
\- "We crushed it down with a bowling ball, man! Sure, we did." laughed the tall football player. "Why?"  
\- "Well, I had a strange experience last night and I kinda heard the drums. You know... Those drums…" he replied emphasizing the last word.  
\- "Maybe that's just some traumatic resurgence. You know, even if it wasn't our body, we lived some pretty rough moments..." Fridge got suddenly serious. "You've been eaten alive by massive jaguars. That's tough, man. I had some nightmares from the rhino thing, you know. But now I'm ok. Maybe, you needed more time to really deal with it."  
\- "Yes, you might be right." said Spencer with a crisped smile.

He had those nightmares too and like Fridge he got over it. And until now he felt ok. He was pretty sure that what happened last night wasn't just bad memory resurgence. However, the fear was crawling its way back and he didn't like it at all.

They separated in front of the school. Spencer chose to keep his concerns for himself. When he met Martha and Bethany, later that day, he didn't tell them anything. They all seemed to have moved on and he didn't want to bug them with his own late fears. But as soon as he came back home he decided to put on some researches.

He didn't have the slightest idea from where to start. So, he tried some keywords randomly: Jumanji, jungle video games, jaguar statue... Nothing. The rare results he found led him dead ends. He tried to read some articles about virtual reality and things like that, but nothing built nowadays seemed to approach the realism that they were confronted to. So, he went dry quickly and he found himself looking blankly at the cursor blinking in the search bar of his browser.

Suddenly, Spencer heard a knock at the door. Lost in his thoughts, that little sound scared him and he couldn't help but jump. With a slightly exasperated face, he turned round and saw his mother entering his room.

\- "Don't give me that look, sugar. I did knock on the door first." She said.  
\- "Yeah. I know. I wasn't expecting it, that's all." He said with a shy smile. "What do you want?"  
\- "I was just saying goodnight to my little boy." She looked distantly at his screen. "You should not use the computer that late, sugar. You know, screen light is bad for the sleep. Besides, be careful on the net, on TV they talked about a new virus. They said it does bad stuff to your files and things like that... Well, that's just gibberish too me."  
\- "Really? How it's called?"  
\- "Oh, I don't remember. It was some complicate name. Just be careful, ok?"  
\- "Yes mum. Don't worry. Good night."  
\- "Ok, sugar. You too. Bye bye."

When she closed the door, Spencer leaned back in his chair. He was a little bit annoyed by the intervention of his mother. Since he returned from Jumanji, he didn't like much the childish names she used to give him. He felt a little bit too old for that. He wasn't against nicknames but he aspired at something more badass than "sugar". If only he could find something as cool as Dr Smolder Bravestone to entitle himself.

\- "Spencer the Great." He said playfully then he laughed. "Oh god, this is ridiculous. Nobody can actually be called Smolder Bravestone." He added in a mockery.

But he stopped short. What if his avatar was a real person? What if the brave doctor had existed? Without high expectations but a sincere curiosity, he wrote the name in the search bar. It was kind of a stab in the dark but to his surprise, he had some results. For the most of them, the name was just quoted in old registries, but he did find a small paragraph on a misty website that sparked his interest.

\- "Doctor Xander Bravestone...explorer." He read out loud leaning toward his screen. "The origins of his nickname 'Smolder' aren't quite established. He disappeared in the late 18th century during a mission to Peru with his valet Finbar."

This last sentence sent shivers down his spine. Normally, he would have discarded the website because it didn't seem legit, but the mention of Finbar was more than coincidental, so it encouraged him to continue. He tried the others' names. For Bethany's avatar, Sheldon Oberon, he found some similar results. The guy was a cartographer from the early 19th century. Like Bravestone, he mysteriously disappeared on a mission in South America. The details were thin as those persons were from a distant past. However, he found himself luckier as he had more results for Martha's avatar, Ruby Roundhouse. She was a self-defence teacher from Brantford and, like the others she had disappeared but it happened in the eighties, so he found some old newspaper articles on the subject. There was a long investigation before her disappearance was finally classified as cold case.

The leads Spencer had found left him with more questions about Jumanji than before. The game seemed to have travelled a lot, and it seemed that it existed for a long time too. He let himself fall back in his seat and sighed, then plunged his hand in his hair and began to think out loud.

\- "So those guys were possibly our avatars. There were real persons. What did happen to them? How could they even be trapped into the same game? There were no video games at their times... Well, maybe for Rube Roundhouse...but how had the others been trapped?"

He definitely needed answers. He thought almost instantly at Alex. Like them, he had been trapped into the game, but it was a long time ago. Spencer was curious to know how it happened for him, back then.

From the group, he was the only one to have kept contact with him. Martha and Fridge just didn't seem to have the desire to do so. And regarding Bethany, she still had some strong feelings for him but the age difference and the fact that he had a family made her feel quite uncomfortable so she decided not to stay in touch; at least until she felt free from her sentiments.

Spencer was about to write Alex an email but he heard his mother's steps in the stairs. He quickly shat down his computer, switched off the light and almost jumped in his bed. The moment she reached his room, he was already silent. He heard the steps slowed down, passing near the door, but they continued forward. The teenager sighed in relief. He waited a few minutes before grabbing his phone. When he was sure nobody would interrupt him, he began to write. He could have waited till the morning to do it, but he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep if he didn't send that email.

Spencer didn't detail the reasons why he wanted to learn more about his correspondent's experience but he wrote a pretty long message. He was a little bit nervous about the possible answer but he slept well that night.

* * *

I hope you like it.  
See you soon :)


	3. What matters

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

Thanks Defender31415 for the follow :).

Here's the new chapter with a bit of Martha POV. Things are getting complicated :)

* * *

 **What matters**

Her hands plunged in her pockets and dragging feet, Martha was walking down to the campus. She was preoccupied. Spencer had become more and more nervous and quite secretive during the last few days. She tried to speak with him but he was not really cooperative. Martha wasn't jealous by nature - she though - but as Spencer was now her boyfriend she began to experience this terribly unpleasant feeling when he chose to ignore her. So, she began to be more attentive and to look for details. That was how she found the mail he sent to Alex, and the things went in a direction she didn't anticipated. They had their first real argument that day. Spencer was turning a bit paranoid about all things that had happened in Jumanji and the theories he thought out were just pure craziness to her eyes.

While she came close to the principal gate of the school, she suddenly saw Bethany scampering joyfully in her direction. She couldn't hide a wince. Her friend had this kind of joie de vivre and exuberance she didn't want to witness today. She was not in the mood. However, she couldn't do as if she hadn't see her and try to avoid her, so she let her approach.

\- "Hi there!" Said the blonde girl with a big smile on her face.  
\- "Hi…" Martha replied more shyly.  
\- "Are you ok?" Asked Bethany noticing immediately the lack of cheerfulness of her friend.  
\- "Yeah… What's up?" added quickly the redhead girl with her best neutral expression. The blonde glanced at her critically.  
\- "Hmm… You're not a good liar." She smirked. "Is it about Spencer?" Martha flashed red. "Oh I see. You know, we can talk. Girl to girl." Added the blonde more seriously.  
\- "Well..." The redhead girl hesitated. "Yes, it's about Spencer, but I don't want to bug you."  
\- "Don't worry, you won't." Bethany smiled genuinely. "I won't force you to tell me, but I'm here if you need, ok? Don't be shy."

Even if she was reluctant at first, her friend's goodwill was infectious and Martha smiled back. To tell the truth, the proposition tempted her. There weren't much people whom she could talk to about Jumanji and Bethany had quickly become a good friend after the events. Some weeks ago, she would never have imagined getting close to the pretty girl.

The problem was that Spencer had involved Alex in the equation. Martha knew how Bethany felt on the subject and didn't want to hurt her by evoking him.

\- "Ok. Thanks." She simply replied.

Before leaving, the blonde gave her an undesired but very welcome hug. Martha couldn't help but smile at the affectionate gesture. But as they separated, she felt a strange tickling where their skin touched, like a light electric residual pinch. The sensation vanished quickly so she almost instantly forgot about it.

###

Spencer had hope the week-end would help but Martha and he hadn't talk to him since they had their first serious argument. Neither a call nor a text. He knew from the beginning that was a bad idea to let her know but, since she had read the mail he had sent to Alex, he had no choice but to tell her the truth. Usually he wasn't the kind of guy who was not capable of express his thoughts but in front of Martha's incomprehension he found himself gabbling. Then, he said something stupid that triggered her and everything went off road. They both camped on their positions and they separated on that angry note. Right now, he didn't want to make the first step. In fact, he was a little bit afraid of her reaction if he did...

The day went pretty fast as the lessons distracted him enough of his own problems, but as soon as it was time to quit the campus his anxiety skyrocketed. He knew Martha finished her lessons at the same hour but she was in another part of the school. As nervous as he was, he was afraid to meet her and to do it wrong all again, so he tried to reach the exit as fast as he could. He already knew that was not a good idea but the fear to make it worst was stronger.

There was a lot of people in the hall and he was slaloming nervously, looking everywhere at the same time. But as he wasn't looking in front of him, he crashed into someone. The girl he just hit almost fell but she managed to recover.

\- "Hey!" She protested. "Look out!" Her expression softened when she recognized him. "Spencer? You're in a rush?" There was definitively a bit of wariness in her tone. The teenager frowned.  
\- "I'm sorry." He replied quickly.  
\- "What's the matter, you look terribly nervous." she told him with an inquisitive look. "Well, it looks like you're trying to avoid someone." Bethany smirked.  
\- "You spoke to Martha." He asked in alarm.  
\- "She seemed quite upset this morning and you, Mister, have a curious behaviour, I have to say." Added the blonde girl with a faked seriousness in the tone.

Even if he got the light-hearted side of her act, Spencer couldn't help but feeling nervous. He watched above Bethany's head, searching in the crowd a possible redhead. The blonde noticed it immediately.

\- "Ohhhh, I see. Is Mr Bravestone afraid to have his ass kicked by a certain killer of men?" she kidded.

Incidentally, her joke triggered him. He took her by the arm and guided her outside the campus afar from the crowd.

\- "What's the matter with you?" She asked angrily when he released her.  
\- "She told you about my researches and the emails I sent to Alex, right?"

Spencer realised too late that he had just said the thing he shouldn't have. Bethany's expression darkened as he mentioned Alex. She seemed quite upset.

\- "No, she didn't, but you just did…" She replied with a severe look. "So now…Spill the beans. Can you tell me what's it all about?"

At first, he was nervous because he was afraid that she would react like Martha, but the blonde girl didn't. She listened at his explanations without saying a word. She demonstrated an unexpected great patience with him. He could tell her all about his strange experience with his phone to the discoveries of the real persons behind their avatars. He tried to stay as laconic as possible but, as she was the first real attentive ear he got, he got carried away and was speaking freely by the end of it.

\- "When I discovered that our avatars were from different time, I asked myself how they could have been trapped in the same game than us. That's why I contacted Alex. To ask him how it was for him twenty years ago. He told me that the game had changed. At first, his father had found the game on the beach and it was a board game, not a video game. So, the thing can mutate. That's why I'm afraid. Maybe we didn't really destroy it. Maybe it can change again and do people wrong. What do you think?" He was almost out of breath.  
\- "I think you should talk to Martha and forget about all this." She replied with great calm. Spencer frowned.  
\- "But this is important!" He exclaimed. "Jumanji could be still active somewhere, and …"  
\- "Yes, it could be. You said it. It could. But tell me. What's the most important thing to your heart? The one you love or that freaking game?"

She touched his hand. Suddenly, Spencer felt like an electric surge. It sent shivers down his spine and for a few second his mind went fuzzy. He couldn't remember what was bugging him lately. He knew that there was a problem but it wasn't important anymore. He looked down at Bethany. His vision was blurry. Though, for a brief moment, he swore he saw her left eye becoming glassy. He blinked several times and when he could see clearly again, her face was back to normal. He felt a little bit confused and strangely Bethany seemed also. But, soon the troubled sensation vanished and, with it, all his doubts. Everything was fine. Everything was right... He never felt that relieved since a long time.

\- "Thank you."  
\- "No problem. Now, you know what you need to do. Talk to her. Apologize. And everything would be fine." Bethany said, visibly trying to keep her composure.

Ignoring – not by choice but because he wasn't able to care at the moment – the discomfort his friend was trying to hide, he nodded in agreement. She smiled at him and gave him a shy goodbye sign before turning heels.

Spencer didn't know how long he stayed there looking in the distance, but he almost jumped off his feet when he heard Martha's voice behind him.

\- "Spencer? I saw Bethany talk to you. What did she..." She stopped when she saw his strange look. "Are you ok?" She added worryingly.

Just seeing her made his heart beat faster. Without warning, he hugged her and landed a soft kiss on her lips. Martha smiled through her confusion as he caught her unprepared.

\- "I shouldn't have talked to you the way I did last time." He quickly said. "She just showed me that I was losing what's really important. You... Would you forgive me?" Martha flashed red.  
\- "I was a bit harsh on you too." She confessed, a bit mousy. "I over reacted."

Spencer smiled. He couldn't have hoped for a better resolution to their former quarrel. It was almost too simple to be true, but right now he didn't care. He was sincerely happy and that was all that mattered.

\- "Wanna walk back home with me?" He asked almost shyly.  
\- "Sure." She replied, equally mousy.

They interlaced hands and they quitted the campus, leaving any bad thoughts behind.

###

Back home, Spencer was still on his cloud. Though, the fogginess that had blurred his mind was slowly dissipating. He was gradually growing nervous. Something was missing or just wrong. He couldn't put a finger on it.

More by habit than real need, he sat at his computer and opened his mail box. The most recent email was the reply Alex had sent about Jumanji. Spencer broke in a cold sweat as he began to remember what happened lately. What scared him the most was that he seemed to have forgotten some parts of the day.

He closed his eyes and he tried mentally to rebuild everything he did. He attempted several times and he realised soon that the missing part was the discussion he had with Bethany just before he reunited with Martha.

\- "I know I talked to her... I know she helped... But how?" He murmured to himself.

That incident bugged him profoundly but he muted his concerns. He looked at the screen for a long time and then sighed. There was definitely something odd about all this, but he just regained the trust of his girlfriend and he didn't want to blunder that close to their reconciliation. The best way to do it was not the go in front of the troubles. He swore to himself that he will find the truth somehow but it will wait another day.

Spencer reluctantly closed his mail box. He got up and left his bedroom without much enthusiasm. As soon as he closed the door, hidden in his coat, far from any curious looks or attentive ears, his phone activated.

For a few seconds the interface glitched severely. A muffled drumming sound resonated. The same glitches appeared on the computer screen. Behind the dancing pixels, the web browser partially emerged. The pages seemed to pass high speed in the background. Suddenly everything stopped. The glitches froze. The drums went silent. The computer screen flashed several times before displaying the desktop as it should. And in the pocket the phone's one went black.

###

It was dark outside, as in Bethany's room. The blonde girl was sitting on her bed. Her face was lighted with the cold gloom her phone emitted. She was looking at the screen but she didn't seem to be aware of the glitches that were dancing on the interface. Suddenly the pixels froze and she began to speak with a strange monochord voice.

\- "Compatible host found. Target acquired.."

The screen went black and the blonde girl suddenly jolted. The next second, she went slack and felt back on her bed. The phone restarted, vibrating against her leg, but she was totally unaware of it.


	4. Communication issues

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

Thanks bre18710 for the follow and Defender31415 for the review.

Shorter set up chapter this time.

* * *

 **Communication issues**

 _Despite the recent events, Spencer sticked to his own promise not to search further about the game. At first, he really did it just to avoid troubles with Martha. Though, he tried to keep discreetly an eye on Bethany, searching for clues of an odd behaviour from her. Unfortunately for him or maybe hopefully, the blonde girl was back to her normal self – which was always quite a lot – and, as nothing strange occurred to feed his concerns, his anxieties got progressively tamed._

 _To his own surprise, he found himself gradually forgetting about what ignited his fears and beginning to tell himself he just had been paranoid in the first place. After all, maybe Fridge was right. Maybe that was just the manifestations of his late dreads coming from the experience he had in the game._

 _Everything went quite smoothly till the end of the scholar year..._

###

Spencer was seated at table in the kitchen, grumbling at his phone. He was trying actively to get the last message from Martha, but the device wasn't very cooperative. Since the last few days it happened frequently. Most of the time, it was an excessive loading times for mails or texts and a very annoying noise on the line. On the worst cases, messages were unreadable.

Focused on his task, he didn't pay attention to his mother return form the grocery. It was the third attempt at loading Martha's text and it begun to upset him. She was away for the first two weeks of the summer vacations, and their main tool to stay in touch was defective. Fortunately, the problem appeared lately so, for the most part, they could communicate normally. He first thought the technical issue was her side, as she was far away but then he noticed he had the same problem with Fridge who hadn't quit Brantford.

The message finally loaded. _"Today, it rained so we went visiting museums with my parents. I hope the weather is good here. I miss you. Kiss"_. It was nothing, but he couldn't help but smile. As he began to write an answer, his mother called him:

\- "Hey sweetheart, don't mind helping me here?" He looked at her, arms full of packages.  
\- "Oh sorry!" He got up and took one of the bags.  
\- "Still on your phone." She said as a gentle reproach.  
\- "Yeah, that was Martha. I have some difficulties to get her messages. It's been at least two or three days now."  
\- "Poor child." Mocked his mother.  
\- "It's the same with Fridge." He added quickly, feeling that she wanted to tease him about his relationship with Martha. "Do you have any problem with your phone?" He asked, extracting some fruits from the paper bag.  
\- "Where you've been? You're always connected, and you didn't read or see the news?" She laughed. Spencer frowned. "Brantford telecommunication centre is overload. They have electrical surges that disturb the network, they said."  
\- "Oh, I see..."  
\- "You know the story: they don't know what can cause the troubles, but they do as fast as they can."

Spencer smiled at the teasing, though he wasn't really pleased by the news because, even if his mother was joking about it, he really felt the need to talk to Martha. For him this telecommunication issue had happened at a bad time, but at least now he had some explanations. He just had to be patient.

\- "What's that?" Asked his mother while putting some purchases one the kitchen table. She took his phone.  
\- "That what?"  
\- "I don't know. There was black tiny and... Oh! You've got another message from..." She smirked.  
\- "Give me that!" He exclaimed grabbing quickly the device from his mother's hands. She was clearly amused by his reaction. "Mum... That's Fridge." He complained.  
\- "Yeah. You're cute."

Ignoring her, he tried to load the message. As expected, he had to try several times, but it finally showed. It was a grouped text. _"Guys! What's up? Wanna do some pick-nick Sunday?_ " Spencer grinned. He had hoped to invite Martha that day as she was due to return just the day before. His grimace strengthened as a notification from the red head girl came. _"Great idea! Count me in. See you soon."_ He would have preferred to spend time with her alone before, but she had made the decision for both of them. He sighed in defeat.

He was about to text back when his mother soundly cleared her throat. He looked up. She was pointing at the stuff on the table.

\- "The tin cans won't find the shelves themselves."  
\- "I just..."  
\- "Tin cans. Shelves."

He pouted but obeyed. He shoved his phone in his back pocket and helped her with the purchases.

###

To escape his mother's "big brother" eye on his phone use, he waited till the evening to be alone in his room to answer the message Fridge had send. _Sure buddy. I'm looking forward to see you all."_ He replied, a bit insincerely.

Soon, he had another message. From Bethany this time. He had some difficulties so see the message because she had joined a picture, but after several attempts, it worked. The blonde girl had sent a picture of her smiling all teeth in front of an impressive mountain panorama. _"Sorry guys, I won't be back on time. By the way, sorry for the delay. I've got bad reception here. See you next time!"_

He smiled. He had forgotten about the trekking she was doing. To tell the truth he was impressed of her doing that king of stuff on her own – as her friend Lucinda didn't want to join. He had been Bravestone for a time but in the real world his courage extended just enough to be able to ask for Martha to be his girlfriend, not doing trekking in the wild. Bethany had quickly become quite fearless.

 _"_ _Have fun! See you soon."_ he replied.

He jumped in surprise as his telephone vibrated almost instantly after his message was sent. _"I sure will. You too."_ was Bethany's answer. For an instant, Spencer thought it should had been impossible for her respond that quickly, but he was interrupted by his mother calling him from this other side of the house, yelling some unintelligible requests. During the short second he turned his head to scream back a loud "coming", his phone glitched. When he looked back, his conversation with Bethany was on screen as if nothing happened. He locked the device and left it on his bed as quitted the room.

###

Several miles north, in the mountains, in an empty camping tent, in a side pocket of a trekking backpack, a phone flashed open. It slowly began to irradiate a green glow. Then a drumming sound resonated… it was quite muffled at first but then grew stronger and stronger. The raging drums suddenly stopped, and the phone shat down.

* * *

Yeah, it's happening.


	5. 7um4n71

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

I'm a bit early with the chapter but there will be something else Friday.

* * *

 **7um4n71**

It was a sunny Sunday. It brought people out. Park was full of strollers. When Spencer arrived at the meeting spot, Martha was already there.

\- "Hey." He said to catch her attention, as she looked the other way. She turned round.  
\- "Hello." She responded with a big smile. She stood on tiptoes to reach him for a kiss, but they were interrupted by a familiar voice behind them.  
\- "Hey guys, I don't want to be the third wheel here." Said Fridge smirking.

Spencer laughed as he let go off his girlfriend. Martha blushed a little bit and chuckled discretely.

They chose a place near a large pond shaded by massive trees. That beautiful sunny day seemed to have attracted everybody out. They were surrounded by several other groups, families or friends just like them but there was enough space for enjoying some privacy.

The three had come with different food and utensils. They all unpacked their stuff and the joyful reunion began. Between two bites and laughs, they talked a lot. The subjects were diverse, but a big part was dedicated to the school. They shared great time reviving fun memories of the past year, and soon they found themselves looking at their future. If Fridge was pleased to tell the others about in sportive projects, Spencer and Martha were a little bit reluctant to evoke their college ambitions. They already had talked about that but the possibility of being separated from each other for long periods of time was darkening their mood.

While they were discussing about their future scholastic orientation, their three phones rang at the same time. Martha was the first to look. She frowned.

\- "What's up?" Asked Spencer.  
\- "That's strange. I've received a text from an unknown sender. The number is 7um4n71." She spelled slowly.  
\- "Same here." Confirmed Fridge.  
\- "What? That isn't even a number." Pointed out the brown teenager worryingly.  
\- "Oh, that's from Bethany!" Stated Martha, a smile growing on her face.  
\- "You opened it? Are you crazy? It could be a virus or something..." Said Spencer while trying urgently to pick up his phone from his pocket.  
\- "Well... Obviously it's not, and she seems to have a blast." Argued the redhead girl rolling eyes at him.  
\- "Where do you think she is?" Added Fridge ignoring Spencer's concerns.

The worried teenager opened the message in turn, but he didn't share their joy. First, he hadn't caught it when it was spelt by Martha but reading it could clearly see that the coded sender was "Jumanji" written in an approaching "leet speak" alphabet. Secondly, he had already received this picture of the blonde girl, and the message felt strange to him. _"I'd like to be with you, but the park doesn't match this view."_

\- "She already sent that picture." He stated.  
\- "When?" Asked Fridge confused.  
\- "Two days ago, when you proposed the pick-nick. She sent us that picture." Insisted Spencer.

The two others looked at him with incomprehension. He quickly searched for the original message. He found it in the group thread but when he opened the details he noticed that he was indeed the only receiver.

\- "You didn't... What the..." Questions rushed in his mind. He wanted to tell the others everything that felt wrong at the moment, but he couldn't find an angle. Even if for a few seconds, he was arguing with himself silently, he finished out loud. "Anyway, since when Bethany talks in rimes?" He asked while reading the message, hoping that his friends would make the connexion. And they did.

\- "Jumanji…" Whispered Martha, using the word no-one wanted to hear. He shuddered.  
\- "How is this possible?" Asked the tall footballer.

The question triggered something latent in Spencer's mind. Snippets of memory rushed back but in a very disturbing way. More than being suddenly unlocked, he had the uncomfortable impression that those souvenirs were kind of pushed back by something. He remembered the incident with his phone and his researches on Jumanji in great details. Then, he experienced the strange conversation he had with Bethany weeks ago but from both their points of view simultaneously. He relived the moment of confusion he had when she touched his hand. There was something coming from her that, for a moment, reached him. Was it still there? Was that thing that numbed his vigilance till then? The dread rushed inside him like a cold river.

\- "Spencer? Are you ok? Spencer?" He realised that Martha was calling him. "You know something?" She asked when he focused on her.

Before he could even answer, their three phones rang simultaneously again. That was another message from the same sender. _"Help me!"_ A second later, glitches appeared on their devices.

\- "What's that?" Asked Fridge in alarm, touching his screen in order to disperse the myriad of black squares.  
\- "That's what happened to my phone months ago." Replied Spencer with an unexpected composed voice. "That's why I was spooked out. I... No Bethany…" He said confused. "She did something… She was acting weird that day and…"  
\- "What are you talking about?" Martha frowned.  
\- "It's hard to explain but I think she is in deep trouble and so are we..."

As soon as he finished his sentence they heard the sadly familiar drumming sound. They had just the time to look at each other. Their figure distorted as they were sucked into their phone. And, as the world was fading around them, all they could hear were screams.

###

Spencer felt the terrifying sensation of falling off the sky, but this time he didn't see anything. He just suddenly felt the ground connect with his feet and when he opened his eyes, he was back in Jumanji's jungle. The young man looked around him. Everything seemed less real than the last time, not because of the visual aspect itself but everything else was like dead. No living sounds. No smells. In a way, the environment seemed even more hostile.

Then, he looked down at himself. He recognized immediately Bravestone strong figure. That made him smirks, but his smile vanished when he stretched his left arm and realized there was no tattoo on it. That wasn't the same Jumanji of which they were players, months ago. Just to confirm his theory, he pressed his left pecs. Nothing... Spencer gulped.

Soon, his friends materialized in front of him. It was just like a cloud of particles that came from nowhere swarming back together to rebuild them. He frowned. Was that the way he came here too?

\- "Spencer?" Asked Martha in the body of Ruby Roundhouse as soon as she was aware of her environment.  
\- "Yes! That's me." He replied.  
\- "How can we be back?"  
\- "I don't know, but be careful, there is something very odd…" He said.  
\- "Odd, like we're back in a creepy video game that wants us dead!" squealed Fridge in the tiny frame of Mouse Finbar.  
\- "I don't think we're a video game this time." His friends looked at him with concern. "I don't have any tattoo or ability screen. You?"

Martha and Fridge tried in turn. Nothing.

\- "Even my backpack is empty." Said the black man confounded.  
\- "So, what's the matter this time? What are we supposed to do?" Asked the redhead heroine.  
\- "I have no clue… But here is another mystery to be solved… Where is Bethany?" Spencer realized that the blonde girl or, as they were all in their Jumanji selves, her rotund avatar was missing.  
\- "You think she is there?"

Spencer took the time to think before answering. His new recollected memories were an advantage over the others for the comprehension of what may have happened, but he had no way to explain it without be labelled "crazy" on spot. He had to be methodical.

\- "I think the last message we received was from Bethany." He finally said.  
\- "How could it be?" Retorted Martha. "I'm sure the sender was that creepy game. And as you said before we were sucked in, since when does Bethany talk in rimes?"  
\- "I'm talking about the last one."  
\- "I know but how could she use the same id than the first message?"  
\- "First things first." Interrupted Fridge, almost saving him from a convoluted explanation he knew he couldn't deliver properly right now. Almost... "What happened with Bethany? You said she was acting weird." Spencer gulped.  
\- "Martha, do you remember that argument we had because I was obsessed with Jumanji?"  
\- "Yes..." The girl blushed a little bit. "Now, it seems your concerns were well-founded..."  
\- "Well… I hope that it upped your confidence because I don't think you would believe me if I told you." Taking their silence as an invitation, he continued.

He tried to describe the strange encounter he had with Bethany that day. He was fighting to find the right words and to make the whole thing believable, but when he came to the part of his partially erased memory he lost them.

\- "You're beginning to talk nonsense." Alerted Fridge.  
\- "I know, I know… But really, it's a very hard thing to tell. And now that we are here I think you can believe me." Both Martha and Fridge displayed the same frustrated expression, but they didn't argue. "I think we should find Bethany and ask her about everything. Maybe she knows better."

Spencer knew he wasn't much convincing but for the moment he couldn't do better. He had some theories, but his friends weren't in the best disposition to hear more crazy stuff. He really hoped that Bethany had the answers and that finding her was the best way to make his point.

\- "So where do we start?" Asked Fridge, filling the blank. Spencer shrugged. "Okay… Let's take a look around, shall we?" He proposed.

The small guy readjusted the backpack on his shoulders before turning heels. Without a word Martha and Spencer followed him.

Even if Fridge had shorter legs the other two walked a few feet behind. They consciously slowed their pace to let a certain distance between them, so they could talk in private. Spencer was a bit nervous, but he asked:

\- "You seem a bit a bit upset. Is that …"  
\- "No." She interrupted. "I'm not upset. I'm confused." She replied quickly without looking at him. "I mean. You were right, and I didn't listen to you. I feel bad about that. But now, in a sense, what you said seems even more unbelievable. I don't know what to think. I'm not sure if you're crazy or not."  
\- "Wow! That was straight." She nervously snuck a pick at him. "I like that." He added with a big smile. She blushed. "You know I'm not sure myself. I wish I could explain but I have to admit that I'm confused too."  
\- "You really think she is there?"  
\- "I kinda hope."

From afar, Fridge called them.

\- "Hey love birds, I think I have found something!" He screamed. Martha and Spencer joined him running. As they approached he pointed the tree next to him. "What was the sender code, already?"

From up to down, on the tree peal was carved: "7um4n71". The strangest thing was maybe the artificial way those marks looked.

Spencer got nearer and touched the naked wood. The shape changed under his fingers. It darkened and then slowly distorted. The three teenagers jumped out in surprise as it suddenly erupted in a myriad of tiny black blocks. The propelled blocks flew few inches from the tree and then just stopped in the air. A second later, the surface recomposed itself as fast as it had exploded, in a perfect reverse movement.

\- "What was that? What is happening down there?" Asked Fridge slightly alarmed.  
\- "I wish I had a proper answer to that…" Replied Spencer frowning.  
\- "It looks like glitches… like those we had on our phone just before we ended here... but in 3D." Said Martha looking obliquely at him.  
\- "Yeah, you may be right…" He simply stated. "Sincerely, I'm not sure about the signification of all this and it creeps the hell out of me. Let's move. Maybe we'll find more on our way."

In silence, the group moved forward.


	6. Shadows

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

Thanks echonic for fav the story :).

Here is the new chapter where dangers are crawling.

* * *

 **Shadows**

As they were progressing through the jungle, their surrounding was changing. The place seemed progressively darker and sinister. The canopy was thick and the sun light hardly penetrated, however some trees seemed to generate their own light. The darkest ones had strange glowing and pulsing vines running through their peel.

Soon they arrived in a small glade. Strangely the place was even darker than the forest itself.

\- "What is this place?" asked Fridge looking suspiciously around him. "I don't understand how it works."  
\- "It looks like something his darkening the sky in this very place. Look! I don't know what it is but it's moving." Said Martha pointing at the sky.

Observing closely at the darkness, the two boys saw the movement too.

\- "I don't like it. I mean, could it be worse? That thing is just over our head." Exclaimed Fridge. As soon as he said that, the ominous drumming sound reverbed through the forest. "Well I am beginning to think that I'm a jinx." He said almost to himself. Spencer crooked a smile at that comment.

From the edge of the surrounding trees the ground began to radiate in a bluish light. The three teenagers looked with a mix of anxiety and curiosity the soil lighted up within a multitude of luminescent vines that were quickly crawling to the centre of the glade. A bright spot appeared at the junction node and a shape formed into it. When the light dimmed, they all could see an emerging black pedestal. Some strange writings were dancing on the apparently smooth surface.

Intrigued, Spencer approached to look at it closely. Martha and Fridge joined him but staid few feet behind. The pulsating symbols were sliding an inch from the surface on what looked like an energetic field. As he stretched his arm in order to touch the strange block, his eyes caught a movement in the distance.

\- "What's that?" he asked, whispering like he didn't want to disturb a shy animal.  
\- "Where?" Fridge looked around nervously.  
\- "There! Behind the trees, there is something moving!" Exclaimed Martha pointing at a slight shifting shadow."

As her voice pierced, the shadow stopped and seemed to turn in their direction as it noticed their presence.

\- "There is more than one." Said Fridge in alarm as he spotted new forms sliding in the shadows.

Soon there were many of them swarming at the edge of the forest. The erratic movements made it hard for the teenagers to identify their real shape but, as far as they could see, the creatures seemed humanoid. However, they seemed to uncannily crawl in a reptile way onto the ground.

\- "Why don't they come closer?" Asked the red hair girl as she noticed that none of the strange creepy creatures was approaching.  
\- "The light." Replied Spencer few seconds later. "Look. They seem to avoid the glowing spots." He added, pointing at some of enlighten threes in the distance that the creatures seemed to skirt.

\- "So, as long as we stay in the light, we're ok, right?" The footballer was growing nervous.

Spencer chose not to answer and looked back at the pedestal. The drums beat suddenly louder. It always had been a signal that meant danger but this time, he felt it like an encouragement. Hesitantly he stretched his arm.

\- "Spencer! They're moving forward!" Screamed Fridge as some creatures slid past the light.

At that very moment, all the shadows rushed toward them like an indistinct swarming dark cloud. Simultaneously, Spencer touched the stone. Suddenly, the writings shined brighter. Then there was a big flash and a detonation. The three teenagers closed their eyes as the light surrounded them and all the creatures screeched in unison as they were engulfed by it.

When they could see again, the pedestal was emitting from its top a powerful beam to the sky. The strange clouds were slowly dissipating around it, in concentric waves. That bright new light that shined the glade made it less ominous. The vegetation seemed healthier and the blue veins that ran on the soil and trees radiated now in a soft green.

Spencer looked back at the pedestal. The writings were now fixed but it still couldn't read the symbols. He flinched when Martha's hand touched his arm.

\- "Spencer. Look." She said quietly, pointing at the edge of the forest to their right.

A well-known roundish silhouette was slowly getting out of the shadows.

\- "Bethany?" Asked Spencer in disbelief as he recognized her avatar.

He scanned her as she approached them. He noticed quickly how worn out she seemed, even if she was smiling. She had some dark circles under the eyes and her outfit was a bit dirty and, in places, rudimentary patched.

\- "Hey guys. You took your time." She said with a soft voice and a corner grin.

From the first words, he knew it was their good old Bethany and he was happy to see her, but a part of him couldn't trust her totally. His instincts were telling him that there was something odd about her. He wanted to ask her a million things, but he was afraid to arouse suspicions. He quickly looked back at Fridge and Martha. Like him, the footballer seemed puzzled and a bit on the defensive. On the other side, his girlfriend just seemed to be thrilled to see her friend again.

Before Spencer could stop her, she ran toward the cartographer and gave her a big hug. The two boys exchanged a concerned look.

\- "I'm so happy to see you too, but easy girlfriend. I'm not in the best shape, as you can see." Bethany said. "Hi there!" She added, waving at the boys, as Martha broke the hug. The red-head girl took a step backward to look at her.  
\- "What happened to you?" She asked with concern.  
\- "Wooo, long story, but this may not be the best place to talk. This is the first phase of repel, so the shadows may still come back. If we stay here, it will be harder to get out the glade." She passed round Spencer and Fridge and looked at the pedestal. "Good. You have activated it." She looked intensively at the writings, like she was trying to learn it.  
\- "Can you read it?" Asked the red-haired girl intrigued.  
\- "Yep." She quickly replied.  
\- "How?"  
\- "Archaeology, I guess." She tilted her head and formed the victorious V with her left-hand fingers near her face. She kept the pose for a second and winked at him before releasing and adopting a more serious behaviour. "That good old Shelly must know, so I can read it. I don't know what those glyphs are though. It says: _Teamwork_."  
\- "Wait a minute." Interrupted Spencer suspicious. "We don't have our special skill this time, how can you? And by the way, how did you find us?"  
\- "For the skills, I don't know. You're the smart guy who knows all about video-games stuff. Not me." She said, flashing a dark look at him. "For the rest, I'll show you." She said, slightly irritated. Then, she sighed deeply before regaining her composure. "Anyway, we must hurry. I have safe place where the shadows don't come near much. I'll tell you more when we'll be there. Now be quiet. They hunt by the sound we make."

She invited them to follow her. Martha went with her without asking any question. They took the lead. Fridge and Spencer followed suit a bit more reluctantly. The guys didn't talk but Spencer found it reassuring that his friend seemed to share some of his misgivings about their freshly found friend.

###

Bethany seemed to perfectly know where she was going. They soon quitted the forest and she led them to a large pool supplied by a high waterfall. She pointed out a rocky path before taking it with a dynamic pace. The three others weren't as assured as she was, and she quickly distanced them. They saw her disappear behind the roaming wall of water.

Spencer took the opportunity to talk to the others.

\- "Hey!" he interjected half screaming half murmuring. "Listen. There is something odd about all this and I'm not sure about Bethany."  
\- "What are you talking about? You wanted to find her. Now that she is there, you're suspicious?" Said the red-head girl on a slightly disapproving tone.

Martha was frowning and growing upset, Spencer could tell. He wished he had some good explanations to share with her to justify his strange behaviour but, for the moment, it was just an intuitive feeling. He offered a crisped smile which, in his current incarnation, was a bit ridiculous. That had the auspicious advantage to release some of the tension. Martha couldn't help but giggle.

\- "Look, I just ask you to be vigilant. That's all, ok?" He concluded with a more relaxed expression. Fridge didn't say a word, but he discreetly nodded back at him.  
\- "Alright." Martha finally conceded with mischievous smirk.

Spencer sighed in relief. Then, one by one, they followed the same path Bethany took a moment ago and entered in her lair.

* * *

Notes:

\- For those who are interested in the answers I gave Defender31415, here are some for everybody:  
1) Yes, Alex will show up - The OS "The name I gave you" is his first appearance. He will appear again later on but I won't tell when or why or how lol.  
2) This is not a phone app :).

\- For the record, I haven't based the "shadows" on the "A quiet place" monsters. The movie came out in late June in France and I heard about it just the week before (by the way, I enjoyed that movie a lot :D). I had almost finish writing this story at that time.

Anyway, I hope you like it. See you next week for the next chapter!


	7. The cloud

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

To JOHNHAMMOND1993 : Sorry I cannot answer that now without giving too much about what's really going on... Yeah, I know that may be a strange answer for a simple question, but you'll discover soon enough why lol. Mystery... mystery... XD. The truth is out there (X-Files theme playing in the background).

Well, back to the chapter. This one is quite talkative.

* * *

 **The cloud**

The rocky path led to a hidden cavity behind the waterfall. The sun coming from the outside lit the entrance, but it was pretty dark. Their friend was waiting several feet away at the threshold of the shadows.

\- "Welcome to my hidden palace. We are safe here. It's far enough from the dark spots and the noise from the cascade covers us so, the shadows usually don't come near." She looked back in the dark and added. "The first few meters are a bit dark but, don't worry, you won't get lost."

Without waiting for them, she stepped backward and disappeared in the shadow. The group quickly followed. As she said, the portion of the gallery that was plunged in the dark was small and they arrived soon in a large natural space tailed into the rock. It was lit by some artificial torches placed against the walls that gave a smooth blue colour to the place.

In a corner there was a big pile of wreckage: different kinds of pipes, wires and metal bits. With some of those pieces, she had kind of McGyvered some furniture. There were a sort of table and stools in the middle of the room and a bit further there was a rudimentary bedding. For an unknown reason, the place made Spencer nervous.

Next to the entry, Bethany was waiting, hands on hips.

\- "Please, have a seat." She said, genuinely smiling. "I know it's a bit rustic. I'm not that good at crafting objects. But even if it looks precarious, it holds. I have personally tested them." She laughed.  
\- "You made fours stools?" Asked Spencer. Not that he really wanted to find something against her, but he couldn't help being suspicious.  
\- "Yeah." She replied with a bit of sadness in her voice. "I didn't want anyone to fall down there but a part of me wanted badly somebody came. I guess, doing it, I thought about you, guys. To tell the truth, I made those quite early. Having the impression that somebody will come helped a lot. I thought about Alex and how he managed to stay twenty years all by himself and I was quite terrified to live the same." Spencer felt suddenly bad.  
\- "How long have you been there?" Asked Martha dreading the answer.  
\- "Weeks probably... Maybe a month or two." Bethany looked down. "Time passes strangely in there."  
\- "What is the last thing you remember before getting sucked in?" Tried Spencer, now curious.  
\- "I don't remember being sucked in. And it's been a long time for me."  
\- "Please, try. this is important."

Bethany frowned. She was clearly experiencing some difficulties to recollect her memories.

\- "That's strange." She finally said. "It's like the past year is foggy. I vaguely remember things like going to school, doing stuff but it's like a fading dream."

Spencer glanced at her. The sensation she was describing was exactly what he felt that time she unintentionally kinda messed up with his head. The whole afternoon his head had been numb. And even after recovering his senses, he couldn't remember clearly what happened to him, until now.

\- "You know that's weird... I feel like this IS real and everything else was not." Spencer gulped.  
\- "Are you sure you don't remember anything from the time before entering Jumanji?" He asked.  
\- "Well, you tell me. Clearly, you seem to know better." She stated with a shade of accusation in her tone.  
\- "We know or believe some things, but the important thing is what YOU remember." insisted Martha, not sure about what Spencer was searching exactly but curious to know what happened to her friend.

Bethany grimaced. Obviously, she wasn't getting at all the purpose of all this. But after a bunch of loud sighs, she seemed to finally focus in order to answer his question.

\- Well... The last thing I remember is... trekking."  
\- "Yes!" Exclaimed Martha, kind of relieved that their memories matched. Encouraged, Bethany continued.  
\- "I took a two-days hike and camped in the forest. I put the tent for the night and then I was there."  
\- "Did you have your phone with you?"  
\- "Sure!" She replied with a sarcastic laugh. "I may have ease off on the phone but I'm not blonde enough to go on a trip like that without it. By the way, didn't I send you a text when you ask for a pick-nick, or something?"  
\- "That you remember!" Joked Fridge.

Without paying attention to the mouthed insults Bethany was addressing to the black man, Spencer thought out loud.

\- "Then, it's been just a few days. Two at most." Then, he realised that a bit a finesse could have been used to reveal that to their friend as her expression was now reflecting a mixture of surprise and shock.  
\- "So, you didn't even know I disappeared? It's been so long for me!" Bethany wailed. "I could have died way before anyone would have noticed my disappearance. Nobody knew..."

As she was suddenly afflicted, she let herself fall on a stool and, elbows on the precarious table, she plunged her head in her hands. Martha sat down next to her and put a recomforting hand on her shoulder.

\- "Hey. We are all back together now. Remember how strong we were when we fight the last time. It's going to be ok." She said softly. Bethany look back up at her.  
\- "Yeah... But you were the strongest, girlfriend." Martha giggled. "And Spencer said you had no skill this time. To be honest, I don't know why I still have mine. One thing is sure though, my specific talents are not the best use in our case."  
\- "Don't underestimate yourself. You managed to survive on your own till then."  
\- "Two days... What a performance!" She dryly joked.  
\- "Surviving Jumanji is always a challenge. You did great." Corrected Martha. Bethany smiled but she didn't seem fully convinced.

Spencer sat down in turn. He was facing her.

\- "You know, it may have been just days, but I'm sure your longer experience in game was real too." He tried. She nodded in agreement without looking at him. "And as you were here for a long time, do you have any idea of what is happening this time?"  
\- "I'm not sure." Bethany replied shily. "Though, I have since covered a lot of ground down there and found some clues. I think we must restore Jumanji one more time. The shadows gangrene the world and the pedestals seem to have to power to repair it. At least, they seem to repulse the shadows and prevent them from swarming. I activated one myself, but I couldn't approach the others until you came."  
\- "So, it looks like a key quest this time. There was a message on our pedestal. What was written on yours?"  
\- " _Stay sharp_." Bethany replied with a corner smile. "I am not sure it means anything else but what it looks like it is: pieces of advice... But what I'm sure about is that those pedestals are good. I mean, everything that can repulse the shadows seems to be a positive thing to me, right?"  
\- "Yeah, that seems good to me too." acknowledged Fridge, participating from afar. He seemed quite uncomfortable. "By the way, what are those creepy things?" He squealed.  
\- "I don't know. They are made of those tiny square thingies. There are just billions of them in the cloud. They ooze from it."  
\- "What cloud?"  
\- "The thing that darkens the sky." She paused as she saw their mixed expression and then she realised: "Oh yes, you just saw them from under. It's better to see them from above. Let me show you."

Even if she seemed to embrace her natural enthusiastic self again, Bethany couldn't hide her tiredness when she stood up. Martha exchanged a worried glance with the two boys, but no-one said a word.

They promptly followed their friend into the cave as she showed them a narrow passage in a corner. If she had to twist a bit to help her roundish shape to pass the first rocks, that was Spencer who was the tallest and the most build up who had troubles to follow. Fridge didn't miss the opportunity to taunt him a little bit as he had no problem to sneak in.

The path was lightened with the same artificial torches that procured light in the living space of Bethany's place. Even if the passage was larger, the teenagers were forced to walk in single file. Soon the curvy and uneven path raised drastically, and they almost had to walk on all four to progress. When they finally saw the natural light, they literally had to climb their way out.

They arrived on a large and inclined rocky platform that overhung the forest and the waterfall. A pedestal, similar than the one they had newly activated, sat in state at the edge of the cliff. It was also emitting a strong beam of light to the sky.

\- "There is... the cloud." Bethany said out of breath.

A dark mist was floating and slowly moving over the forest underneath. Some places were literally coated, and it was impossible to see what was under. The movement of this strange mass was odd. It defied the laws of physics and it was clearly animated by something else than the wind; almost like it had its own will.

\- "What the heck!" Exclaimed Fridge, looking all around with a growing feeling of uneasiness. "This is sick."  
\- "See, your pedestal is there." Pointed Bethany, still breathing hard from the recent effort. The other beam was clearly visible in the distance. "The shadows are receding. In a few hours we'll see how much is cleared. And maybe we could scout a bit."

Spencer took a few steps backward and scanned the place. The cliff platform was large and slightly inclined. Then, within a large hundred yards it dived toward the forest. The ground was rocky for the most part, but it had the same slightly green glowing veins on it. Those strange vines sprang from the pedestal and then forked in all directions, melting with vegetation. Some of those were sinking into the ground through cracks.

It was quite odd. Everything looked familiar but totally different in the same time. It was like something had scrambled the distinctive patterns of the Jumanji they knew to form this new world. The cliff they were on overhung the rest of the land like the jaguar statue did when they came the first time, but it kind of looked like the waterfall they jumped from to escape Van Pelt minions.

Spencer looked back at Bethany who was now joyfully chit-chatting with Martha. He smiled. Even if she was trapped in the body of the roundish cartographer he recognized her mannerisms. But, his smile slowly vanished as his wariness kicked in one more time. As he gazed at her, he suddenly realised what was bugging him about her appearance. She had the same sick expression as Van Pelt or, at least, the dark circles under her eyes gave that impression. He felt his blood turn cold ice as a strange idea was slowing working in his mind. What if their friend had been scrambled out, just like the rest of Jumanji? Could something else have been mixed up with her?

Maybe she felt that he was observing her because she flashed a glance in his direction. The eye contact lasted just a few seconds, but he clearly saw that she knew he was suspicious about her. He gulped.

* * *

Any idea about what's going on now? :)

See you next week.

[Edit] After Defender31415's remark, I just want to say that, in general, I can give answers and explanations as authors notes when I'm not spoiling. I don't mind to give a little bit more in PM, as long as it's not just telling what's coming next lol.  
For JOHNHAMMOND1993, it seems like a simple question to answer and It looks like I'm dodging it. I understand It could be frustrating... I'll give explanations on the subject in exactly 2 chapters. Then, it will be spoiler free.


	8. Corrupted

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

First things first: thanks to the reviewers. I'm happy you're asking yourself questions about the plot. Also, thanks Cato Yugi for the multiples favs and follows :-)

JohnHammond1993 : All I can say is that this chapter will comfort you in your theory. I'll give explanations next chapter :-). But, for the "him", I'am sorry there is nothing there but a common french mistake... In french "game" is a masculine word, so I used "him" instead of "it"... I corrected the description. Thank you.

Matt : you're asking yourself a very good question :-). The chapter is the first step to understand what hapenned.

Defender : thanks for your patience. I'am happy to share some details with you.

As this chapter is quite small, I initially planned to publish it earlier this week but as I'm on vacations with only my tablet and hotel wifi, that was not that easy lol. So finally I sticked to the calendar :-).

* * *

 **Corrupted**

Spencer needed desperately somebody to talk to. He knew that he shouldn't hide his thoughts like that - he remembered too well now how bad things went when he was obsessed with Jumanji and he tried to keep Martha aside – but he was one kind of safe proofing everything before sharing his theories. And as his girlfriend was currently talking to his main concern he turned to Fridge who seemed more on the same page. He was standing near the pedestal and looking to the distance. Spencer got closer.

\- "Are you ok?" he asked seeing his friend preoccupied look.  
\- "I don't know... Everything seems odd. I mean last time was weird, but It was not that creepy." He clarified. "Look at this cloud. This whole land seems corrupted."

The word "corrupted" strangely clicked in Spencer's mind. He knew that what his friend meant was slightly different of what he understood but the idea was quite the same. He remembered vaguely about a virus intricately named that was infecting some computers in Brantford lately. He blamed himself for his lack of attention at that time. Maybe there was an obvious link there that he was missing.

\- "Hey man, you look like a some-one who just had an idea." Said Fridge smirking as he caught his shifting expression. "I guess it's a bad one."  
\- "Well... It could be." Spencer looked over his shoulder, where the girls were.  
\- "Come on! You still wary about Bethany?"  
\- "Don't tell me you are not. I saw your look before we entered her place." He whispered, hoping that his friend would keep his tone down too. He didn't want to be heard.  
\- "Yeah, at first, I was suspicious. To tell the truth, she spooked me out a bit when she appeared from nowhere earlier. And, I don't know, she seemed a bit off. But man... She had to survive alone on this creepy land. She said, for her, it was like weeks. Who wouldn't be changed by that?"  
\- "That's part of the problem Fridge. We are in avatars and this is a virtual place. We shouldn't be changed. Remember Alex? He was trapped twenty years and he looked perfectly fine. He didn't even realised he was trapped for that long. It's been there just a few days and look at her. She seems worned out. Even her outfit is patched. Something is not normal. Either her or Jumanji is not right." Fridge frowned.  
\- "So, what are you thinking about?"

Spencer hesitated few seconds, but he really needed some-one to share with.

\- "A virus." He whispered, trying to behave as casual as possible. He waited for his friend to follow his line of thoughts, but Fridge seemed confused. "You said it yourself. It looks like corruption."  
\- "You mean like a disease that makes things decay?"  
\- "No, I talk about an informatic virus, but the metaphor stands. If you think of Jumanji as a video game or something else virtual, it's like it's been altered. You've seen that before, on old games, when you do something that is unexpected, and the game doesn't know how to compute so the interface glitches. Sometimes, the sprites are scrambled out but the game is still running."  
\- "You know that you're talking almost in a foreign language to me, right now..." conceded Fridge with a slight pout. Spencer rolled eyes at him.  
\- "Please try to link dots here. Look around you. Everything is familiar but completely different in the same time, as if pieces of Jumanji had been put together in the wrong order. And then, they are the glitches. Call them cloud or shadows or corruption if you like, but that's what those tiny black thingies are to me. The same appeared on my phone weeks ago and then again when we got trapped in here. I think Jumanji has been altered by some kind of virus and it called us back to try to fix it. The problem is that Bethany got here first. We still don't know what happened to her. This is not her fault, but she emanates something as uncanny as this place. To be honest, she reminds me a bit of Van Pelt. What if something has merge with her avatar like the rest of Jumanji?" He concluded.

Uncertain and clearly trying to assess everything what was just said to him, Fridge was looking at him with a mixed expression. Waiting for his friend to answer, Spencer passed nervously his hand on his bald skull. He didn't mean to deliver that much but, once he began, he got carried away.

Suddenly, he realised that he didn't hear the girls anymore. Fridge seemed to acknowledge the situation at the same time. The petit man glanced past his big frame before looking back at him with an uncomfortable grin.

\- "They are right behind me?" Asked Spencer. Fridge nodded.  
\- "You think I'm infected?"

The question came with this uncontrolled high-pitched male voice that Bethany had when she was on stress, but she sounded sad and shocked at the same time. Spencer turned to face her. He felt bad when he saw the hurt expression on her face. Confused, Martha was standing shily a few feet behind and looking in turn to everybody.

\- "Maybe..." finally conceded Spencer shamefaced. To his bad luck, the girls had obviously caught most of the conversation.

Bethany looked down to her feet. Her jungle hat was now hiding her face, but they soon understood that she was silently crying as her shoulders were agitated by a small tremor. Martha approached and put a comforting hand on her back.

\- "Man, you did bad." whispered Fridge.  
\- "That's exactly what I wanted to avoid." Replied Spencer tight jaw.

The red-haired girl suddenly squealed. She quickly moved away from Bethany and ran toward the boys.

\- "What's wrong?" Asked Spencer, welcoming a distressed Martha at his side.

For answer, she just pointed at Bethany who was now quickly shifting between her real appearance and her avatar's. The blonde girl was seemingly freeze frame in a silently screaming posture. The blinking intensified as her roundish counterpart seemed to have some difficulties to fully form again.

\- "What the hell?" Exclaimed Fridge, frightened. "What is happening to her?"  
\- "She's glitching..." Replied Spencer, surprised by his own self-control.

Then, the avatar's shape stabilized. He slowly raised his head, revealing his dark if not menacing expression. Progressively, his left eye turned white. Ignoring Fridge and Martha, he eye-locked with Spencer.

\- "You might be right, my dear Braverstone." He said in a deep baritone voice.

* * *

Well, here we are :). See you next week for the next chapter. I'll be back home by then, so it will be easier to edit.


	9. The voice of the dead

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

JohnHammond : I like the character too, but more from the first movie, personally.

Matt : Corrected :).

Defender : The real Bethany is still in here. "Van Pelt" wasn't impersonating her.

Just a little warning for this chapter : here comes one of the darkest parts of my story.

* * *

 **The voice of the dead**

The shady figure that was standing in front on then wasn't their friend anymore. It was disturbing how much transformed the cartographer was. It was like even the light played differently on his face. He was emanating evilness.

\- "I have to thank you for breaking her mental barrier a little bit. It's hard to sneak in that close to the pedestal." He said, smirking with malevolence.  
\- "Are you Van Pelt?" Asked Spencer.  
\- "Van who? No." He replied with a strangely upset expression. "I'm from your world. I'm longing to return." He added with a certain glee.  
\- "Who are you then? What's your name?" Tried Martha.  
\- "I... I'm..." The avatar seemed confused, like he was searching for an answer he didn't have. Then, focusing once more, he said : "I'm what I do."  
\- "Which is?" asked Fridge almost ironically.  
\- "Consuming." replied the avatar with a disturbing smile.  
\- "Leave our friend alone." attacked suddenly the red-haired girl, ignoring the menacing glare he was landing on each one of them.  
\- "I can't do that." He stated as if it was patent. "I'm stuck here too. The game tricked me in there. I have to find the way out..."

Suddenly, he grabbed his head with both hands and walked a few steps backward, slightly stumbling.

\- "No no no... Don't! Not yet!" He screamed before slacking.

It was like his body was maintained upward by invisible strings. When he regained his posture, the evilness seemed to have left his body, but he still didn't look right.

\- "Bethany?" Asked Spencer, stepping forward carefully.

The cartographer seemed a bit lost and was watching with a critical eye his progression.

\- "Who is Bethany?" He finally said with an odd British accent. Spencer stopped as he was guessing the name of the person they were facing now. Things were complexifying at an alarming rate.  
\- "Professor Oberon?"  
\- "How do you know my name?" The man replied suspiciously. "Who are you?"  
\- "Oh boy! When you said you thought she was mixed up, I couldn't imagine you meant that messed up." Exclaimed Fridge.

The professor was visible shocked by his intervention. He was now staring at the petite black man with an outraged face. Spencer had to restrain himself from swearing. If he had told Martha everything he had found about the avatars, Fridge didn't know that Oberon was from a very different time.

A giant mixed man with a natural menacing stature, then, to the standards of his time, a black man who seemed too free to talk, and a half-naked red-haired woman: it was not the best starting point to engage conversation with some-one from the 19th century.

\- "It's a long story." Spencer said, trying to appear friendly.  
\- "Who are you?" Repeated Oberon, detaching each word and scanning him head to toes.

Even if the professor didn't seem as menacing as before, he was clearly on defensive. Spencer didn't know how to react or how to explain what was happening. The fact that guy was from another century was a serious handicap. Cultural differences apart, he wasn't sure the cartographer could apprehend modern technology. He had to find another angle.

To his surprise, the answer came from Martha. She had this special look saying I know what I'm doing even if I'm terrified. She joined him and with all the confidence she could put in her voice, she asked:

\- "Sir, are you familiar with the concept of avatar?"

At first, the man looked back at her with condescension, even grimaced when he eyed scornfully at her outfit. By reflex, she put her arm in protection around her waist.

\- "It's a mythical concept from the far East." The cartographer finally replied. Martha nodded.  
\- "From Hinduism." She added. Oberon was surprised and visibly pleased. He showed some interest.  
\- "Lady, I see that you seem to have some education." The red-haired girl smiled and was about to thank him but the cartographer attitude shift suddenly to a more condescending demeanour. "However, I hope you're not suggesting that you are reincarnations of oriental gods. I know this place makes no sense, but don't make a fool of me." He let out, with a dry and contemptuous laugh.  
\- "Of course not, sir. That was not my intention." Gabbled Martha, flashing red. Though, she quickly recovered and added with a steadier voice: "But still, the comparison stands. We are trapped in bodies that aren't ours, like avatars."

The moment she said that, Oberon grabbed his head both hands, eyes squinted in pain. His body began to glitch again, but instead of Bethany frame, he was shifting with his evil self they talked to minutes ago. It was like looking at a cubic painting were the perspectives were mixed. When, it finally stabilized, the cartographer was breathing hard.

\- "Avatars you said?" He asked, jaws tight. He was now quite leery and was suspiciously staring them. Rather dumbfounded, Martha nodded. "So, you are telling me that the evil soul that is trying to dominate me is one of you?" There was a flash of anger in his voice.  
\- "Oh God no!" Exclaimed the red-haired girl. "We have nothing to do with this."  
\- "Explain then!" The man barked, angry and confused at the same time.  
\- "We played that strange game and it trapped us..." She gabbled, feeling the pressure to answer correctly. "Jumanji lured us into its world. We are just trying to figure out how we can get out."

Releasing the name of game kind of defuse the explosive situation. Oberon calmed down immediately. He was still clearly confused but the anger had vanished. He studied them for a long moment before looking back at Spencer.

\- "Bethany? That's the name you used. Is that your friend?"  
\- "Yes sir." replied the teenager.

The cartographer grimaced as he realised that there were more than one unwanted guests in his head and that this plus one was a "she". But then he seemed more intrigued than revulsed.

\- "Blonde? Blue eyes?" He asked.  
\- "Yes, but how do you know?" Inquired Martha.

Oberon looked at her quite intensely but didn't say a word as he seemed to analyse in depth the implications.

Spencer was deeply intrigued but also really appreciative of his girlfriend and the way she had led the conversation. Taking advantage of the relative calm and the fact that the avatar seemed to have forgotten their existence, Fridge came next to him and elbowed him. "Bethany" he mouthed with a concerned look. Spencer replied the same way "I know but..." and then shushed him. It was not the moment to bust everything by making their interlocutor nervous again.

Oberon's expression progressively softened but there was more of a growing sadness in it. When he spoke, his voice was low.

\- "I always thought it was a dream..." He stated almost for himself. "I thought it was just a figment of my imagination that helped me to keep at bay the monster that crawls in my mind. So that means she is really there when my conscience falters... What does that make of me? A vessel?"  
\- "I'm sorry." Replied Martha compassionate. "We didn't choose to end up in other people's body. And to be honest with you, this is the first time we have the opportunity to talk to an avatar... shell." She couldn't find another word to describe it.

The cartographer grimaced once again.

\- "This is wrong in so many ways." He said, almost to himself. "That game is evil." Then, he adjusted his outfit and upped his chin. "The souls should be allowed to rest when their time is done." His voice was full of bitterness.  
\- "Sir? What ..." Tried Spencer, but the cartographer interrupted him.  
\- "I know what happened to me. And now, I know that I'm no more." He said loudly, anger growing in his voice. "I lost the game. I died."

Spencer grimaced. Was that what happened to those who lost the game? To those who died? Was he listening to the voice of a dead man? He broke in a cold sweat... The perspective of being trapped forever and used as vehicle for other people was just terrifying. He looked briefly at his friends to find the same expression of dread on their face.

Oberon closed his eyes as he was trying to remember more things. When he opened them again, he looked down and began to talk in a low tone. He was full of bitterness and sadness.

\- "When I first regained consciousness – if I can still say that – I thought I was in some afterlife place. Neither hell nor heaven. Somewhere in between, waiting to be judged. I was lying on the ground in a strange mechanical city, surrounded by those swarming shadows." He pointed vaguely at the cloud. "They were waiting... observing... I thought it was my trial to gain my place in heavens. What a fool I was?" He snorted. "When I approached this place, the shadows began to show some aggressiveness. I ran as fast as I could. I... no, maybe it was her by then. Anyway... The drums were beating. It was like an invitation. We were surrounded and we had literally just one option. So we rushed to the pedestal. When we touched it, there was a screeching noise and there was light... The shadows were repelled but still there, at the edge of the influence of the pedestal. We had to learn how to survived them. And we did." He had a sad smile."It's strange because, I rarely came back to my senses like I currently am, but I kind of remember everything we've done. It's like figments of a dream that last long enough to be remembered. Foggy and quite clear at the same time. Now, I realise that what I remember must be your friend's journey. I saw through her eyes in my own body... I lived it all." He grimaced. "And, until now, I think she wasn't aware of it... I can feel what she feels. And, right now, she is as horrified as I am."

The roundish man kept quiet for a long time. The silence plunged everyone in deep thoughts.  
Spencer felt sick. When he first became Bravestone, he enjoyed being in that strong body. He was even ready to abandon everything to stay here, living adventures in Jumanji. But after what Oberon just said, he was outraged. Like the professor said, it was wrong. That poor man should have never experienced that horrible feeling of being dispossessed of his own body. In a corner of his mind, he was hoping that none of their avatar were aware of what was happening. Spencer began to shudder. He never wished to quit this body as much as this very moment.

When Oberon spoke again, his voice was softer. His British accent was subtly fading.

\- "We ran through that strange jungle countless of time. We returned to the mechanical city sometimes. But most of the time, we stayed here, on this cliff, for hours, watching the cloud, waiting for something to happen or... somebody to come."

When he lifted his head, his look was milder and bright from the tears he was trying to hold back. There was obvious fear in his eyes.

\- "What is happening to me?"

Bethany was back.

* * *

So, here we are. My answer for the Van Pelt or not Van Pelt question :).

Is it Van Pelt?  
Yes and no. Technically, it isn't. This is something else, but! In a way, it shares the same purpose in terms of story telling. I mean, for me, Van Pelt is the obstacle for the players that makes them grow :

In the first movie, he was the father figure Alan had to confront to learn courage. There are a lot of symbolisms attached to the character. In the second movie, he has not such a depth but he is still the obstacle that makes the four teenagers evolve.

If it's not Van Pelt, why does it seem like him?  
Well, it's because the game wants to warn the teenagers about the danger that lurks inside Bethany's avatar. And Jumanji has no other way to communicate clearly for the moment.

I hope my answer clarified things a little bit and I hope you liked the chapter :).  
See you next week!


	10. Stay sharp

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

JohnHammond : You nailed it :D. For Van Pelt, yes, I imply that it could have been a player that died in the game. From that point on, you can imagine whatever story you want :).

* * *

 **Stay sharp  
**

They all needed some time to recover from the odd experience; Bethany more than anybody. Yet, she was the first to engage the conversation.

\- "I want to know everything you know, guys." Her voice was shaking a little bit, but she seemed resolute.

So, Spencer began to narrate in detail what they witnessed: from the evil unnamed incarnation to the uncanny discussion they had with her avatar.

\- "Were you aware of it?" He asked but Bethany balked to answer.  
\- "Yes, but I don't want to talk about it." She said, pinched.  
\- "I understand, but maybe if we understand it better, we can prevent it from happening." He tried.  
\- "It won't happen again if we finish the game. If we activate the last pedestal then..."  
\- "How can you be so sure there are no more than three?" cut Fridge.  
\- "I scouted a lot and I can extrapolate. After I activated the first one, the cloud concentrated on two other places and, underneath, there was this strange roots net, like the one that lead to my pedestal, or yours. And if you want another proof, you just cleared one of those two dark spots by activating your pedestal." she pointed with a sharp movement of her head to the light beam that emerged from the forest.  
\- "What makes you think that will end the game?" asked the petite man, with a bit of anxiety in his voice.

He didn't want to down her but he had to tried to show her the realistic options she seemed to ignore. Obviously, it didn't go very well, as her expression darkened and she replied with a flash of anger.

\- "I don't know. Ask mister video games. He may know better." She crossed her arms.  
\- "I.. I think she is right for this part." Gabbled Spencer. "Jumanji encouraged us to activate the pedestal, during the shadows' charge. The drums were beating. I know it's strange but I felt it like an invitation to touch the stone. And Oberon told us he had had the same feeling. So, I guess that's Jumanji telling us to activate the pedestals."  
\- "I tell you guys, I won't stay any longer here if it means that..." She couldn't finish her sentence as her voice was choked in tears. She took a deep shaky breath. "We have to quit this game or at least try... We have to do something... anything..."

There were all moved by her distress. Martha took her friend's hand and squeezed it kindly without saying a word. Her friend squeezed back.  
Spencer was torn apart. He wasn't sure that activating the pedestal was the right solution – even if it looked like the obvious move – but, as Bethany seemed quite traumatised by the last events he decently couldn't push her and say no.

\- "So, how do we proceed?" He asked, looking back to the cloud underneath.

Bethany dried her tears and composed herself the best she could. She came next to him.

\- "See that part of the cloud that is thicker than the rest?" He nodded. "That's where the last pedestal is."  
\- "Is it safe?" asked Martha worryingly.  
\- "No, but we can still manage to get closer and take a look. We will decide the right course of action depending on the situation down there." The red-haired girl grimaced, obviously not thrilled by the idea. "I did that a lot and I am still alive." Tried Bethany with a thin smile as she caught the expression of her friend.  
\- "Isn't it too risky for you to go?" Asked Spencer. Intrigued, Bethany frowned.  
\- "What do you mean?"  
\- "I don't want to upset you more, but the bad guy said it was harder for him to get free when you were near the active pedestal. If you get near a deeply glitched zone, I'm afraid you could lose control. And to be frank with you, it creeps me."  
\- "Maybe it's time to take my pedestal's advices literally then. _Stay sharp_. Keep an eye on me. You did that very well till now." She said smirking. "If I begin to act weird, we back up. Agreed?"

Spencer smiled. He was quite impressed by her determination to keep going.

\- "So, where do we start?" He asked.

Boosted, she invited them to follow her. She took back the narrow passage from where they climbed up there and that led to her lair. The way back was way harder than the outward journey. The rock was slippery, and the slope was steep.

During the descent, Bethany gave some instructions for the trip to come. Mostly, it was advice to avoid confrontation with the shadows.

\- "Remember." She said. "The less noisy we are, the safer." She was standing next to the entry of the cavern and her voice was slightly covered by the roaring waterfall. "If you are ready, we can go."

She waited a second and as nobody said a word she took the rocky path next to the wall of water.

\- "Martha. Can you stay with her please?" Asked Spencer. "I have the feeling she takes everything better when it comes from you."  
\- "Well, in her defence, you lacked on tact a few times."  
\- "True that." He admitted, looking shamefully to the ground. Martha elbowed him.  
\- "Don't worry. She's usually good sport. She won't hold it against you."  
\- "Hey guys! What are you waiting for!"

They all jumped in surprise as Bethany screamed from the exit, her head protruding out the rocks.

\- "Coming!" Yelled back the red-haired girl. "I'll keep an eye on her." She added low voice to Spencer. Then, she trotted toward her friend. They passed the corner together.  
\- "What a day, huh?" Asked softly Fridge, coming near the tall avatar.  
\- "Yep." Replied Spencer absently.  
\- "You look concerned."  
\- "I really am."

The two boys exited the cavern too. The girls were waiting near the pool, on the way below. They were seemingly chatting, but they were too far for them to understand what they were talking about. Spencer sighed.

\- "I have a bad feeling about all this." He finally said. "It's not her fault but I have the curious impression that we are running into a trap of some sort."  
\- "Maybe, but do we have a better choice?" The tall man shook his head slowly. "Let's go then. If we stay here longer, it will look like we are plotting or something. Bethany is pretty tense, and, considering what happened, I don't blame her. So, I think we should get loose and let Martha do the magic with her, ok?" Proposed the petite man.  
\- "Yeah. Seems good to me too."

They both took the rocky path descending to the pool and joined the girls. As soon as they approached, Bethany moved forward. Martha looked over her shoulder and gave them a sympathetic smile. Then she trotted to catch her up.

Silently, they followed their friend through the forest.

* * *

As this chapter is a quite short, I surely will update twice next week.

And, just for information : we are now in the third part of the story. There are 5/6 chapters left. The 5/6 is because, it has two endings that I'll post back to back.

See you soon.


	11. Trust

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

JohnHammond : you're welcome.

Here is the new chapter. Everything is darkening.

* * *

 **Trust**

As soon as they had quit the waterfall area, Bethany stopped talking. Martha found herself growing nervous in this quiet environment. The nature was oddly silent and menacing. Sometimes, she would look back at the boys who were keeping their distance, just to be sure they were still there. They were quite silent too and just far enough for their steps not to be heard. Though, she knew it wasn't the thing to do, the more the time was passing the more she felt the need to talk; to break the heavy shell of silence that once installed, because she had the disturbing impression she was alone in this grim jungle.

Then she began to glance more often at Bethany who walked quietly but actively by her side. Her friend was looking expertly around, searching for any sign of the shadows. She was very focused on her task and way more serious than Martha had ever seen her before. This more grave expression was reinforcing the impression that Bethany - or at least her avatar - was damaged in some way. There were those circled eyes that evoked Van Pelt but also strain. And since the glitching incident, she seemed even more tired.

Suddenly, Bethany broke the silence. Though she kept her voice very low.

− "You know, you don't have to watch over me like that." She said with a slightly accusing tone. "Please, don't do your Spencer." Martha flashed red, ashamed.  
− "Sorry. I don't want to search for things if it's what you were inducing by 'your Spencer'" She replied on the same volume. "It's just... You seem very really tired. I'm just worrying a lot. And this place makes my very nervous. I didn't mean to hurt you."  
− "That's sweet of you, girlfriend. I won't lie to you. I don't feel very well but not like I'm going to switch to another guy." She quickly added. "It's more like something has sucked out my energy. But, that must be an avatar thing. Oberon had stamina issues after all... You know, I'm not mad at any of you." She said after a short pause. "It's just... I want my life back. I'm tired of this sick game. Frankly, it's going too far..."

Martha understood perfectly but she didn't know what to tell. The avatar thing was way too disturbing and – she wouldn't tell it out loud but – a part of her was glad it didn't happen to her.

\- "And for Spencer." Bethany added just above a murmur. "I don't blame him, considering what happened, but it's hard to handle his level of wariness. I mean... I sincerely try my best here. I hope he will trust me again." There was a small tremor in her voice. As Martha placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, a shy smile found its way on Bethany's lips. "I'm glad you are here." She whispered.

Further behind, Fridge was growing nervous too. As the group was venturing deeper into the forest and environment was slightly darker, the petite man was looking around, scrutinizing every suspicious shadow. Next to him, Spencer wasn't overconfident either but not for the same reasons. He was looking straight ahead to the girls who were walking in front.

\- "I revise my judgement. Any other choice seems better than what we are doing now." Mumbled Fridge. "Are we even sure she knows where she's going?" He squealed a bit too loud, pointing at Bethany.  
\- "Not that loud!" Opposed immediately Spencer. Obviously vexed to be shush, the black man eyed him obliquely. "I'm pretty sure she knows well. I mean, technically Oberon is a cartographer. She has his skills." He added ignoring his pouting friend.  
\- "I never imagined saying that one day, but: I miss mine."  
\- "What? The backpack superpower." Mocked Spencer.  
\- "Yeah, the one that can give you weaponry to kick asses, mister Bravestone." Retorted Fridge.

They continued arguing along the way. Their low voice banter distracted them long enough to ignore their own fears and the changes in the scenery too. However, when the darkness densified suddenly around them, they naturally stopped talking.

Around them, the trees were as dark as coal and some bluish veins were discreetly glowing on the strange surface they were made of. Spencer look up. He couldn't see the top. He gulped when he realised that the quasi absence of light was provoked by the cloud and it was dangerously low. He flagged Fridge to move faster. They quickly joined the girls.

\- "The cloud..." Whispered Spencer, pointing upward, when he arrived near Bethany.  
\- "I know" She mouthed. Then, she put a finger on her lips, enjoining him to keep quiet. She looked to the ground and designated the veins. Then she mimicked with her hand the walking process. They all understood perfectly what she was trying to say but no-one seemed to want to go any further. "Pedestal" She breathed, as an unnecessary clarification. "We can do it."

Fridge shook his head swiftly and pointed over his shoulder the direction from where they came. Spencer seemed quite doubtful too, even if not as demonstrative as the petite man. Seeing the reluctance in her friends' eyes darkened Bethany's mood. Her shoulders slightly lowered. She eye-locked quickly with Spencer just to found the suspicious look she couldn't bear anymore. The fear in his eyes made it just even worse. She turned toward Martha searching for her support, but the red-haired girl seemed as hesitant as the others. Normally she would have understood their mixed feelings but at the moment, Bethany just felt kind of betrayed and she blamed herself to have hoped for the best.

\- "I'm sorry but I don't want to stay here any longer. I can't... I have to take my chance. If none of you wants to help me, then be it. I'll do it alone like I did for the last weeks." She whispered before quickly turning heels.  
\- "Wait!" Exclaimed Spencer trying to keep low voice, but Bethany didn't listen and moved forward.

They looked in disbelief their friend disappear behind a line of dark trees. The shock effect lasted a few minutes, during which no-one said a word. Martha was thinking fast. She was trying to understand what just happened. She couldn't quite get why Bethany had just fled that way, but then the guys talked.

\- "What do we do now?" Asked Spencer uneasy. "We have to find her. We cannot..."  
\- "Are you crazy?" Squealed Fridge, as low as he could but definitely too loud. "I don't mean to abandon her but, hey Spencer, you were the one talking about traps. I think she just has put us into a big one. I'm telling you, I'm not gonna run into it." He added gesticulating.  
\- "Traps?" Martha frowned. "That's what you two were speaking about while you asked me to keep an eye on her? Do you realise that she was aware of your suspiciousness?" She attacked suddenly. "What is happening is not her fault."  
\- "I never said it was her fault." Tried Spencer to his defense.  
\- "She is trying very hard to fix things."  
\- "Yeah but she made things worse, leaving us alone in this place. She let us down." Fridge said out loud.

Suddenly, the cloud above their head agitated. Spencer was the first to notice the movement. Immediately, he grabbed his friend and covered his mouth to shush him. Fridge began to protest and tried to free himself from Bravestone' strong grip but, even without his skill, the muscular avatar was too strong. Above, the opaque mass began to clearly wave. Fridge calmed down immediately. Spencer freed him.

Soon, there was a bigger distortion in the cloud and a dark bubble formed. It dropped heavily on the ground a few meters from them. After a quick period of stagnation, it shaped itself one of those uncanny creatures Bethany called the shadows. It looked around, obviously searching for them, but it didn't seem to see them even if they were not that far.

The teenagers waited, unmoving. Then the creature slowly disintegrated in a myriad of tiny black squares flying wildly to finally reintegrate the cloud. Spencer frowned. It reminded him the way they had materialised into this world but in the exact reversed process.

As soon as she was certain the creature had fully disappeared, and no others were in vicinity, Martha start talking again. Her voice was so low, she was almost miming.

\- "I'm going after Bethany." She stated. Considering what just happened, even if Fridge didn't dare to vocally protest, his look told everything, and he clearly disagreed. "I'm not going to let her down." Added the red-haired girl, as she saw the expression of the petite man.  
\- "That surely wasn't the best way to say it, but Fridge is right. She let us down. We were afraid, and she didn't wait..." Softly argued Spencer.  
\- "She just ran away in fear."  
\- "In fear?"  
\- "She is not afraid of the shadows, like us." Retorted Martha. The boys frowned. "She's been here for a long time. She can manage better than us those things. She is afraid to be trap in the game forever, like her avatar. She just wants the game to end... I imagine that she thought we just didn't trust her anymore, so she ran toward what she thinks is the only way to escape."

As if it wanted to remind them the kind of threat they were exposed to, the cloud moved slightly above their head. They looked at each other intensely, gauging their courage to push forward.

* * *

See you Friday :)


	12. The third pedestal

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

JohnHammond: Sadly, the curse of the not guessing right is above you again... I'm kidding :). But, Bethany really ran away in fear. The lack of trust was just the trigger.

Here some angst and action. Enjoy.

* * *

 **The third pedestal**

Bethany was following the glowing net on the ground with a blind resolution. Suddenly the cloud above agitated. She stopped at once and observed. She knew that somewhere the shadows were oozing from the sky, but she had no way to know where exactly. She just hoped it wasn't near her friends. For a second, she felt a flash of guilt as she had let them behind, exposed, but she quickly repressed that feeling and tried to focus on her environment. She couldn't let herself being distracted for too long. The shadows were sneaky.

As the cloud regained its former stillness, she continued to progress in the dark forest. She had just one goal: to find the pedestal. If she could activate the last one, Jumanji would be hopefully restored, and they could all get out of this creepy game.

Soon, her surrounding became more and more sinister. The cloud was so thick she couldn't distinguish its shape anymore. If not because of the soft light radiating from the roots and some of the trees she couldn't see a thing. She had never been in a place as corrupted as this before. She slowed down and began to take shallow breathes as she tried to mute every sound she could produce.

Gradually, the forest thin out. There was more and more space between the trees and the ground was almost covered of glowing roots. She tried to look at the soil underneath the net. There was nothing but darkness. She had the strange impression that she was walking on nothingness. She had to repress a terrible feeling of dread.

Everything seemed so different, so artificial. She didn't remember clearly the first pedestal because – she knew now – it wasn't totally her own memories, but in the dreamy figments of what she reminded the place was much more alive. The jungle was still there. Every part of the land she had scouted was not as corrupted as this place. It was like the cloud had totally converted this part of Jumanji. The sky above her seemed not to exist anymore and, as the ground seemed to have disappeared too, it was like the place in its whole could engulf her at any moment. She needed something concrete to focus on, so briefly she kneeled down and touched the ground. It was strangely soft and cold, like polish steel. It was unexpected, but it reassured her a little bit.

− "Ok. You can do it." She murmured to herself.

She stood up, resolute, and moved forward. Even if there was no direction to follow anymore, she knew where to go instinctively. It was one of odd side effect of being in Oberon's body. Even if Jumanji didn't look quite the same, after days of scouting, she had a perfect mental image of the land. She could almost blindly walk in there.

She continued to progress in this strange bubble of darkness where the light emerged from the ground, and then, she saw it. She smiled. The pedestal was there, sitting in its nest of light. She approached silently and stopped a foot from it. The strange symbols were sliding slowing on its surface, like a blue lava lamp.

Suddenly, Bethany felt dizzy. Her head was spinning a little bit but most of all she felt really disoriented. Nervously, she looked around. Why was her mental image of Jumanji vanishing?

\- "You should have listened to your nosy friend. The darker the place is, the stronger I am." replied a sinister voice to her inner interrogations.

She turned round as the voice seemed to come from behind, but she was alone. She frowned.

\- "What the ..."  
\- "You're not looking at the right place." Cut the voice, mockingly.

Bethany broke in a cold sweat when she realised it was inside of her head. That was the evil persona to which her friends had talked to. She couldn't let that thing take control. She tried to move forward but she soon discovered she was petrified.

\- "I can hear your thoughts, you sneaky girl. You cannot outsmart me." The tone was full of resentment.  
\- "What do you want?" She thought, as no vocal communication was necessary.  
\- "Freedom." The voice growled.  
\- "But the pedestal is freedom, why don't you let me touch it?" She asked mentally, looking at the dark block. It was so close and frustratingly out of reach at the same time.  
\- "You're not attentive enough, human child. Jumanji talks to you and you don't listen. But even if you had understood earlier, there is no-way you could stop me." replied the thing inside her.

Confused and trying to understand the meaning of what _it_ just told her, Bethany was absently looking at the lightened glyphs that were slowly moving on the pedestal surface. Suddenly, she saw it. Her eyes opened wide as she realised she could read the message floating in front of her. The words or the letters - she couldn't really tell what those glyphs represent - were kind of scrambled but like in an anagram she began to see a pattern and then she understood the meaning. But before she could manage any coherent thought on the subject, she felt something snap in her mind and everything went dark.

###

Martha was leading the way through the forest. The red-haired girl was scrupulously following the glowing roots, as pointed out by Bethany. Even if they were reluctant, the boys had finally consent to join her. The alternative wasn't better anyway.

The environment was quickly changing. The phenomenon was similar to their approach of the first pedestal, but the corruption was way more important. The darkness was overwhelming. Soon the forest thin out and the path was disrupted by more veins coming from other places, but the general direction was still clear.

They finally reached their destination. The pedestal was waiting for them. It was almost too good to be true. Spencer ran toward his girlfriend and grabbed her arm to stop her. He murmured:

\- "Martha, that's too dangerous."  
\- "Yes, but what do you want us to do?"  
\- "I'm sure it's a trap. Bethany said she couldn't approach the remaining pedestals before. Why could we now? And, where is she anyway? I mean, we may have wasted some time before going after her but she is not there and she should be. Something bad could have happened to her."

The red-haired girl stared at him. She could tell, this time, he was sincerely worried and not just overly suspicious.

\- "Maybe but we're too far now. I mean, the pedestal is right here. We can finish this. I refuse to think she has lost. So, if we win, she wins too, right?"

Spencer smiled. Martha's determination was always something he loved to witness. She was a warrior at heart, for sure.

\- "Ok." He conceded. "But we have to plan carefully first. We..."

Spencer didn't carry on as Fridge appeared in his peripheral vision. He muted some swears. The petite man was already halfway to the pedestal.

\- "Fridge!" he tried to call as low as he could.

Clearly, that wasn't loud enough for his friend to hear but the cloud reacted to that. It suddenly agitated and soon it oozed hundreds of dark drops all over the plain. The shadows were quickly forming.

\- "Fridge! Shadows!" Spencer yelled this time. The petite man looked around.  
\- "There are everywhere! What do I do?" He screamed. The shadows turned all at once in his direction. "Oh my god!" He exclaimed, releasing he just became the canter of all attention.  
\- "The pedestal! Just touch it!" Yelled Spencer back.

Fridge began to run. Hopefully, as the rest of his skills, the disadvantages of his avatar were not active. Even with shorter legs, the football skills kicked in and he was pretty fast. Spencer and Martha followed. The shadows seemed to ignore the couple as they were still converging toward their friend. It was like they knew he was the one that could really change the course of events.

Out of breath, Fridge stopped one foot from the pedestal and stretched his arm. But before he could reach the dark surface, his hand was blocked mild-air by a strong grip. Surprised, he turned round. As if she had just appeared from the nothingness, Bethany was looking back at him with a mixture of determination and anger. Her left eye was totally white.

\- "Oh no you won't." Growled the evil incarnation.  
\- "What are you doing? We were about to win!" Fridge squealed.  
\- "I won't let you stop me." The petite man realised who he was talking to.  
\- "What are you talking about? What do you want?" He asked in panic as he could see the shadows still converging towards him.  
\- "I want to get out..."  
\- "I don't know who you are, you inside, but you're stupid. If you really want to get out, you would let us do what we want. Jumanji is a game. If we win, it will let us go. We did it once. Let us purge the cloud."

The grip tightened around his wrist. He grimaced as it became slightly painful. A sinister smile grew on the evil incarnation lips. He leaned toward the petite man and murmured in his ear:

\- "Funny that your friend thought the same. But your victory isn't mine... I am what you call _the cloud_."

In a reflex movement, Fridge stretched his free arm in order to touch the pedestal. Immediately, the avatar pulled him back with an unexpected force. The petite man fell flat on his back, a few meters away. The backpack absorbed a bit of the impact, but it cut his airways.

When he regained his senses, he felt a strange sensation where Bethany's avatar had touched him. He lifted his arm to take a look at his wrist. Dark tiny square where multiplying on his skin.

\- "Spencer!" he yelled. "That thing got me! I think it's converting me."

All the shadows stopped at once. For a moment, Bethany's avatar glitched badly, almost freeze framed. Spencer didn't wait, he ran toward his friend and helped him on his feet, carefully avoiding the contaminated zone. He kept an eye on Bethany who was now waiting near the pedestal with an uncanny stillness.

\- "What is it waiting for? What's happening?" asked Fridge  
\- "I don't know. She glitched and they all stopped. Maybe she is fighting back and holding them." he replied. Then, he grimaced. "By the way, why on Earth did you go to the pedestal alone."  
\- "I thought you and Martha were going to chat forever and it was just there..."  
\- "Are you ok?" Asked Martha joining them.  
\- "It's spreading..." said the petite man, looking back at his arm with concerns.  
\- "We have to act quick." The red-haired girl added, glancing over her shoulder.

Spencer look at the same direction. It was too dark to see what was happening above but there was definitely movement on the ground. Somewhere behind the pedestal and Bethany, the light from the roots was wavering as things were slowly sliding over it. The shadows didn't seem to notice their presence anymore. They knew that if it was really Bethany holding them back, they may had not much time. They kept low voice just to avoid triggering the shadows still in their vicinity.

\- "If they circle the pedestal, it will be too late. We won't be able to approach." Stated Martha.  
\- "Spencer, if we win, what will happen?" Asked Fridge, deadly serious.  
\- "I'm not sure because the game is so corrupted, but I guess it should reset."  
\- "Like the last time, just one of us has to win, right?"  
\- "Yeah but none of us should lose." Corrected Spencer. "I don't want any of us to share the fate of Oberon or our any of our avatars. What do you have in mind?"  
\- "A Fridge special." The black man replied, smirking.

###

Fridge had explained his strategy. It was dangerous, as they had just one try. But, they believed in the message of second pedestal: _teamwork_. If they did it together, they would have a chance. They knew they didn't have the superpowers of their avatars but physically Spencer and Martha were athletic. They counted on that in order to win.

Around them, the shadows were randomly wandering. The three teenagers took their position for their final assault. Martha slowly walked backwards as Fridge was moving forwards. The petite man stopped a few meters from the pedestal. Between them, Spencer was observing the shadows, waiting for the good moment to give the "go".

He was nervous. His friend had given him a really physical task. He knew Bravestone was naturally strong but, as himself, he never brought down anyone, football player style. He tried to focus on his breathing to calm down his racing heart.

Suddenly, he saw the opportunity. Without hesitation, he yelled:

\- "Now!"

Then, he charged in Bethany's direction. As her avatar was shorter than his he had to bend over to catch her in her mind section. The impact was strong, and she fell heavily on her back. Led by the momentum he fell over her.

At the same time, Martha ran towards Fridge who kneeled down and did round back.

For a second, the shadows seemed confused as they couldn't decide which one of Martha or Spencer they should go after. But the confusion didn't last. They split in two groups. The first one slid back to the pedestal and formed a quickly growing barrier around it and Bethany. The second one rushed towards Martha, but she was fast enough to outspeed them.

\- "What are you doing?" growled the evil incarnation blocked by Spencer's mass.  
\- "Winning." He replied.

In the same time, Martha reached Fridge and used his back as a springboard to do an impressive jump over the dark swarming barrier. The moment, she leaped the chasing shadows covered the petite man. Martha landed precariously near the pedestal. She didn't take the time to recover properly so she literally stumbled onto the dark block. The next second, it began to vibrate.

\- "Stupid humans!" Bethany's evil avatar roared.

The shadows that where converging towards the two teenagers overwhelmed them. They were engulfed by the multitude. There was no pain but the scary sensation that their body was slowly disappearing. Then, everything stopped when the heard a huge bang. The energetic blast was the last thing they were aware of.


	13. Reset

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

JohnHammond: Yes explanations on the "how" are coming but the group has something to do first :). I won't introduce new characters that I haven't mentioned before.

The coming chapters are quite talkative as the characters are slowly figuring out what happened.

* * *

 **Reset**

When Spencer open his eyes, everything was bright. The light from the renewed sun was too intense. It took several seconds for him to adjust his vision. Martha and Fridge were standing next to him, obviously in the same state of confusion he was in.

\- "What happened?" Asked Fridge.  
\- "I think your plan worked." Replied Spencer with a corner smile. "The pedestal is activated. We are safe."

They looked around. They still were in the glade but it was not a dark place anymore. Jumanji's jungle was back, lighter and healthier than they've seen it since they were called back by the game. Further, the pedestal was sitting in a green nest of roots and leaves. Next to it was standing Bethany, or at least her avatar. They couldn't tell as she was turning her back on them. Martha initiated a movement in her direction but Spencer stopped her.

\- "We don't know, if she is herself." He murmured.  
\- "There is not a million way to find out..."  
\- "Martha, I don't want to hurt you, but she was the cloud. That's what she told me." Added Fridge in Spencer's defense. The red-haired girl sight in defeat.  
\- "That was not her."  
\- "They shared the body... What makes you think she is herself now?" Asked Spencer. "She is so still..." He added, looking back at Bethany.  
\- "The shadows got us and we are still there. The pedestal worked, right? Why wouldn't it work for her?" tried Martha hesitantly.

Fridge looked at his arm; the one that was infected. It seemed untouched and, to his surprise, he found a tattoo on it: three black bars.

\- "I think she's right!" He exclaimed. "Look, I have my life count back. It's like nothing happened! The game has reset."

The others checked their arms too and found the same volatile tattoo. That proof was enough for Martha who joyfully called her friend.

\- "Hey Bethany! We did it. You're safe, now. We can go home." She exclaimed.

But as her friend slowly turned round, her alacrity vanished. The evilness seemed to have left her avatar but she seemed far from ok. The exhaustion seemed to burden her.

\- "Bethany?" Asked the red-haired girl worryingly as she slowly approached.  
\- "She's not there." Replied tiredly the avatar with a subtle British accent.  
\- "Professor Oberon?"

He nodded. The tree teenagers joined him. The cartographer was looking obstinately to the ground. His expression was a mixture of anger and despair.

− "What am I still doing here?" He finally asked with languishment.

They all stayed quiet in front of his resentment. What could they tell him anyway... They had no explanation to the current situation and, even if they empathized with him, they couldn't tell him that they were mainly worried for their friend.

Suddenly, Bethany's avatar glitched, but unlike the previous glitches they witnessed it was not a shift between two appearances. It was more like he was shifting to nothingness.

− "God! Why is he still glitching?" Exclaimed Fridge, pointing at him.  
− "Gli...tching..." Repeated Oberon, deeply frowning and finally looking back at them.  
− "Hmm... It's hard to explain..." Began Spencer, quickly glaring at his friend. "Mainly because we are not from your time." The remark was more for Fridge but the cartographer jumped in.  
− "Ancient East gods' reincarnations. Now time travellers. What are you exactly?" He said dryly.  
− "We are not..." mumbled Spencer.  
− "I know... I was kidding." The roundish man clarified, as he saw that his interlocutors had missed the irony. "I was trying to lift my mood. But still. What are you?"  
− "We are just teenagers." He replied. Oberon raised an eyebrow.  
− "Teenagers, huhu... And what is 'glitching' from 'your' time?"

Clearly, at first, the man wasn't receptive to any kind of explanations, but he patiently listened to them anyway. They began the hard task of explaining him what a video game and virtual worlds were. Then, they tried to relate what happened to Jumanji. Spencer and Martha did the heavy lifting in therms of raw explanations but that was Fridge who ultimately made him understand the concepts with his personal interpretations. Oberon seemed even interested by the footballer's commentaries.

− "So, you are telling me that Jumanji was infected by some kind of illness that machine from your time can catch. Those black things oozing from the sky were the virtual representation of that illness... And... Glichtes are the manifestation of an unstable state due to that illness. Am I right?"

The teenagers looked back at the cartographer with amazement. They truly believed he wouldn't get it all, but he surprisingly nailed it.

− "Wow! The guy is a smart ass." exclaimed Fridge, saying out loud what everything thought. Oberon eyed him critically. The black man saw it and quickly added. "Well, our times are different, man. I can speak my mind freely."

Obviously, the cartographer had been caught off guard by the remark, but he replied promptly with a mischievous smirk.

− "I think I can adjust to that. If I can manage to be in presence of a half-naked woman, I think can handle your sassiness."  
− "I like you." Said Fridge, smiling.

An impressive glitch interrupted their joyful banter and it took a long time for Bethany's avatar to stabilize this time. Even if he wasn't fully aware of it, he understood what just happened by the look on the teenagers faces.

− "I did it again, right?"  
− "Yes... And it was a big one." Said Spencer worryingly. "I would have thought with the reset you would stabilize but it seems that the opposite is happening."  
− "Why is that?"  
− "Maybe because you shouldn't be conscious at this point." Proposed Martha.  
− "The game is resetting to his original configuration and you're in an incorrect state." Completed her boyfriend like he had a big revelation. Oberon frowned.  
− "Don't worry, I don't get it all either." Said Fridge to the cartographer, which made him snigger.  
− "The reset process is still occurring. The pedestals are cleaning the virus. When it will be done, the game will return to his former stable state in which you are not conscious. Our avatars did it already but they weren't damaged or, at least, not as much as you ." Spencer stretched his arm to show his life count. "As you were infected to the core, it may take longer for you." The cartographer sighed deeply.  
− "What about Bethany?" worryingly asked Martha. "You said she was not there. What did you mean?" Oberon closed his eyes for a brief moment, as he seemed to recollect his memories.  
− "She was angry and quite crestfallen when she left you. She blindly went in there." The teenagers quickly looked at each other. There was guild in their eyes. "She was about to activate the pedestal and... nothing. The next thing I remember is you talking to me." He opened his eyes. "I just don't feel her presence. Maybe she is still in there... dormant."

The professor was obviously not at ease. Speaking of oneself like being a simple vehicle for another wasn't pleasant, but he tried to reassure them.

− "So, what do we do now?" asked Fridge.  
− "The pedestal!" Exclaimed Spencer. "It gave us advices. Maybe there is some clue on this one too." He turned toward Oberon. "Bethany guessed that she could decipher the glyphs because of you could. What does it say?" The roundish man looked back at the strange letters on the pedestal.  
− "I don't know this language, but yes, curiously, I can read it. It says: _kernel_."  
− "If we consider Jumanji a video game, the kernel surely means where is coded the operating system." Proposed Martha.  
− "Yes! Good deduction!" Complimented Spencer.

The two teenagers began a technical conversation that left Oberon and Fridge aside. They looked at each other with the same expression: a profound lack of understanding.

\- "Does it happen often?" Asked the professor to the petite man.  
\- "Since they are in couple, quite often unfortunately." He sighed. "Excuse-me!" He interjected, as he knew the conversation would take forever if he didn't stop it. "Could you share with us?"  
\- "Oh sorry!" Said Spencer. "We think that Jumanji want us to find his kernel. Maybe there is something more we should do in order to complete the reset process."  
\- "And where is that?"  
\- "I don't know, but it may be hidden or unrecognisable, like protected files on a computer. Most of the time, the interface is user friendly but hides the internal machinery which could seem alien for those who don't speak its language." Oberon grimaced as it was again gibberish to him. "I mean... The kernel is the heart of Jumanji. This could be just a strange place in Jumanji we didn't explore. But, the game has no reason to expose its heart. It's surely hidden and protected." Tried Spencer in a more metaphoric way.  
\- "So, how do we find it?" Insisted Fridge.  
\- "It's hard to tell. I have no idea of what we have to look for. I mean if the thing is hidden, we have just a tiny chance to find it just on luck. We have to know exactly what we are looking for."

They stayed quiet for a long time as the task seemed too hard to achieve. Oberon was especially very pensive. He was fixing the pedestal.

Spencer observed him. The cartographer was a curious man too him. He had a strong will and a sharp mind. The state he was in was not covetable by any means and anyone in his position would have tried to find a way to live but his expression was clearly showing darker lines of thoughts. Spencer joined him.

− "Are you ok?" The man jumped, as he was dragged out of his thoughts.  
− "Yeah... I was just thinking about what you said about those machines; the video games things."  
− "You had quite a hard introduction on that. I'm sorry." joked Spencer, but the professor didn't even smile. He was too focused.  
− "Why can I read this?" He asked, pointing at the pedestal.  
− "I don't know. Are you sure it's not some old languages you learned?"

Intrigued by the conversation, Martha and Fridge joined them too.

− "Yes, I am certain. I know how to read this instinctively, like everybody knows how to breathe without thinking about it... It's so disturbing for me to say this but... what if I'm a part of the machine?" Spencer eyes widened.  
− "You could speak its language." He completed.  
− "And see things that shouldn't be seen..." Added the professor.  
− "You know where the kernel is?"  
− "Maybe... You said the kernel could be a strange place. I know a very peculiar place in Jumanji."  
− "The mechanical city." Said Martha. "Boys, remember! Bethany told us that she used to scavange stuff there for her hiding place." Spencer nodded. Fridge was a bit lost. "And you, you said that you regained consciousness there too." She quickly added, speaking to Oberon.  
− "Exactly..."  
− "So, you know how to go there?" Asked the black man.  
− "Like I know how to read those glyphs." Oberon smirked.

* * *

There is one more chapter before the two endings : a good one and a bad one. Like in video games ;).

See you next Friday!


	14. The mechanical city

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

 **Note:** (For those who are interested...) Now that there is almost no spoiler to fear any more, with each chapter I'll leave notes to give as much informations as possible on the story. Because, once I'll mark this as complete, I won't come back to add comments for those I can't answer by PM. So, be prepared for the big endings notes :).

Anyway... Here we are. The mechanical city is straight ahead and the answers are there too. Warning : it's a bit dark...  
Enjoy!

* * *

 **The mechanical city**

Oberon was leading the group through the thick jungle of Jumanji which seemed almost restored to its former splendour. From time to time they still could see some trees with dark marks but as they were progressing the traces of the corruption were fading. The professor seemed to know every hidden path and didn't hesitate one second on the directions to take.

Fridge, who seemed to have found in the roundish man a new friend, was walking next to him. Sometimes, the cartographer was glitching badly, but it didn't seem to affect him much.

Martha and Spencer were a few feet behind, just enough to enjoy some privacy.

− "Do you think we could save Bethany?" Asked the red-haired girl, low voice.  
− "I really hope so." He glanced at her. His girlfriend seemed bothered. "You still feel guilty?"  
− "Yeah..." She confessed. "Earlier, she opened to me about her fears and I didn't support her."  
− "We were terrified. There was no way we could have reacted in brave heroes at that very moment. And from all of us, you where the bravest. I'm glad you pushed us to move forward. We couldn't do it without you." Martha blushed.  
− "I could kiss you, right now. But that's for my geek hero only." Spencer smiled.

Soon they arrived at a very well known place. Around them, half hidden by the vegetation, were some big animal statues and a path drawn by two lines of braseros. Far away, they could see the giant jaguar statue overhanging the land. Its one eye was shining so bright that even in the full light of the day they could see it.

− "Here we are." Declared the cartographer.  
− "So, that's the jaguar again." Said Martha. "In a sense, we could have guessed it. After all, it's the heart of Jumanji."  
− "Indeed, but we couldn't have gotten too it without the help of professor Oberon."  
− "Wait a minute. You said it would be some unusual place in Jumanji. I don't see anything strange here." Demurred Fridge.  
− "What are you talking about? There is no place stranger than this one." They all looked back at Oberon in confusion. "This is the mechanical city."

He began to describe what they couldn't see: big columns of polish dark steel, green electricity running randomly on it and forming arcs between them. For him this place was still plunged in darkness, even if he could perfectly see and where they saw the jaguar statue, he could only see the light it was emitting.

− "Why don't we see the same thing?" asked Fridge.  
− "He is part of the game. He can read its language. He can see its kernel."

Suddenly, Oberon glitched so bad that for a moment he almost totally disappeared. This time, he seemed to be aware of it. His expression darkened as he intrinsically understood what it meant for him.

− "I'm not sure how long I will continue to exist. I'm pretty sure I don't have much time left. But we may still can do something for you friend that is trapped inside me. No-one should be sacrificed to oblivious... less a young. Let's hurry up." He proposed.  
− "I'm sorry that you are ..." Began Spencer.  
− "This is not your fault." interrupted the cartographer. "That's that crazy game's fault." He said with a tiny smile. Then, he sighed deeply. "What I am now may be just an artificial reconstitution of what I was, but it seems real to me. I feel real." Then, he looked at them with a certain intensity and an unexpected lack of assurance. "You seem to know a lot of things about the strange reality. I have questions I want to ask before it's too late." He seemed to search the courage for a few seconds and then just let it go. "Is there heaven for those who died like me? Like echoes in a machine? Are my final acts as this ghost of myself count in this unreal world in the judgement balance? Would my soul reach the heaven if _this_ me does something good? It may sound selfish, but... I need something to hold onto... Even if it's a lie."

A heavy silence followed the cartographer's monologue. It tore them apart. Martha lowered her head to hide the tears that were menacing to form at her eyes. Fridge turned slightly away too. Spencer, throat tight, was the only one able to reply.

− "I'm sure you would..."  
− "Thank you... " Oberon smiled and cleared his throat before continuing with a more steady voice. "We have not time to waste any more. Let's save your friend. That will be my final human act."

Heavy hearted, the group silently moved forward.

###

It seemed to take forever to reach the foot of the jaguar statue. Last time, they had to run and fight their way through it and the life-threatening menace made the time pass faster. Now, it was just a boring and long tortuous path. They didn't have the opportunity to slack off, though. Their progression was quite a nervous wreck as there were slowly racing against time. The stake was the life of their friend trapped in the defective body of their guide. The glitches he was victim of were now rarer but worryingly stronger. Sometimes, he would almost disappear. It was like looking at a blinking neon, knowing that at some point it would definitely break. And they couldn't go much faster as the men was quite exhausted.

The professor was trying to keep it together as the horrifying process occurred. The rest of the times, he would just talk to distract himself. Fridge, whom was still walking ahead with him, seemed to have a calming effect on him. Most of the time, they were joking all along. It helped the man not to think about his precarious condition.

From time to time, Oberon would describe some changes on the scenery that they couldn't observe. As they progressed, more artificial structures were emerging from the ground. For the cartographer it was just nonsense machinery steaming randomly and linked by numerous cables.

As they came closer, traces of the corruption were visible at some places. Some trees were still completely black or small patches of dark mist was floating just above the soil. They were quieter when passing nearby. They wouldn't risk triggering it by making too much noise.

They finally arrived at the bottom of the jaguar statue. It was almost like they remember it was, except it had a large dark patch on its base that was slowly resorbing.

− "What does it look like for you?" asked Spencer to their guide.  
− "I don't know. I have never seen anything like that before." He replied. "This is an insane construction. There are cables running down it surface like wines. It's a tangle of crooked pipes." He squinted eyes and approached the base where, for them, the dark patch lied. "There is a strange and large device here." He said, touching the dark surface. Vaporous glyphs appeared and slowly formed letters. It wrote a word vertically.  
− "7um4n71" read Spencer out loud. "It looks like it's the same mark that we saw on a tree when we arrived here." He added.  
− "Could it be the same place?" asked the petite man confused.  
− "Could be, yes. I mean, Jumanji was upside down. The directions meant nothing." He touched in turn the dark patch. The mark didn't react at all. "Oh, I see!" He exclaimed suddenly.

Fridge elbowed Oberon:

− "Gibberish storm coming full force..." he murmured with a mischievous smile. The cartographer giggled.  
− "Remember when I touched it last time?" he asked to his friends. "It was dispersing in tiny black cubes and it reverted. It was like a localized version of the cloud except it was still consistent. Like it was trying to keep its shape. I think Jumanji's heart was beginning to be converted when we arrived, and it was still fighting it, trying to save its integrity. It materialised us in the safest place still under its control."  
− "I got half of it, and you?" whispered Oberon to Fridge, smirking. The black man shrugged.  
− "Please follow me on this." Said Spencer, ignoring the two men joking. "I think I figured it all." He was clearly excited and began to speak with enthusiasm. "Imagine the virus that attacked Jumanji as a virus that attacks a human body. It infects small parts first using the cells of its victim to grow and multiple. That was the cloud... If a body already knows the virus, it can counter it and destroy it before the damages are too big. But if it doesn't, the virus will ultimately kill its host. The only way that he can continue to exist is if it finds a way to spread."  
− "The thing inside Oberon. It wanted to get out. It said it was the cloud." Told Fridge, remembering the terrifying encounter.  
− "It said it was from our world too..." Added Martha. "Could it be the virus?" The cartographer didn't say a word but he was listening attentively.  
− "This is where I want to go." Said Spencer, happy that his friends were joining his line of thoughts. "Jumanji transformed from a board game, like Alex or the professor here knew, to a video game. When we entered in it was an old school game for us because time had passed. We physically crushed the console and the cartridge, but it seems that we didn't it completely destroy it, so it was able to evolve once again. Nowadays, most of the games are connected to internet, but for a program, it could be a dangerous place to be if you have no protection."  
− "A newly transformed Jumanji infected by a strong internet virus. That's what you are talking about?" asked Martha.  
− "Yes." confirmed Spencer. "There were those news on TV, repeating that a virus was infecting computers, phones and so at Brantford. Remember?" The teenagers nodded. "Maybe if affected Jumanji too and it was unable to fight the virus because it was the first time it encountered such a thing and it didn't have to proper protection. That's why it called us back. To help it."  
− "But we didn't have the cure. And why Bethany first?"  
− "A body can make its own cure. That's principle of vaccines. But if it's too weak to fight, it's useless. Maybe it had found the counter agent - the pedestals - but was too weak to activate it. It needed somebody else to do it for it. And for Bethany, it may have been the first try. She activated the first pedestal and as she got infected herself it called us too to finish the job. That's my theory. That's all I've got." He concluded. Oberon frowned.  
− "I think I understood what you said. Well most of it... But there is something I am not sure about."  
− "What it is?"  
− "The fact that we were infected 'after' activating the first pedestal... The thing was inside of us all the time, as much as I am aware of."  
− "Your program was maybe already corrupted when it called her back." The cartographer grimaced but he didn't take outrage.  
− "I don't get it then. Why and how did we survive all this time without the vaccine like you said? If we were just a tiny part of Jumanji and the whole thing was falling apart, how could we find the strength to resist?"  
− "For what you showed us, I can tell you are a tough man, professor." Said Martha. "And the Bethany I know has a strong will too. Maybe that thing couldn't match your two fighting souls..."  
− "I'm not real..." stated Oberon coldly, just before glitching badly, as to illustrated what he was saying.

It took some time for him to stabilize again. The experience seemed to have shaken him pretty badly. He took a few steps and found a rock to sit on.

− "I'm not sure I can hold it together much longer. How do we save your friend? How do we get her out of me before it's too late?"  
− "We don't have any instructions. Normally, we won the game. We should be able to return our place and time. Last time, that's what happened."  
− "Guys, the writing has changed." Interrupted Fridge. They all looked at the dark patch on the base of the statue.  
− " _Those who win will find their way, those who loose will stay to play._ "  
− "But we all won! We saved Jumanji! We saved you!" shouted Spencer at the statue as if it could hear him. The writing slowly morphed into another sentence.  
− " _Can be saved those who live. The corrupted ones we cannot retrieve._ "  
− "What stupid game are you? What game could put innocent people at risk like that? What's the purpose?" asked Martha angrily.  
− " _To live, to grow and die. Life is the same. Everyone plays. That is the game._ "  
− "What?!" Exclaimed Fridge, outraged.  
− "That not fair!" Cried Martha. "She helped you... Oberon helped you... They do not deserve what you're doing to them!"

Letters vanished one more time to form new words, but it was just glyphs. They all looked at the professor who was the only one who could read it. His sad expression was familiar. A little bit softer.

− "Don't leave me here." He pleaded in a more high-pitched voice.  
− "Bethany!" Exclaimed Martha as she recognized her tone. She ran toward her and hugged her.  
− "I'm scared..." She wailed in her arms. The boys joined her quickly.  
− "We cannot let you here." Said Spencer, resolute, but he had no idea how to stick to his own words.  
− "But it won't let me go." She said looking back at the letters on the rock.  
− "What does it say?"  
− " _The vessel is not the one you think. If released, the world you know would sink._ "

The last patch of darkness was rapidly reducing now. Then, there was a flash and they were all suddenly experiencing the same fogy flashbacks.

 _They witnessed Jumanji raising from the destroyed carcase of the console they had smashed and mutating into a more abstract form. They saw its wild journey through bits and octets, adjusting to its new environment. It was scary to see how quick the game adapted to its new dematerialized form, absorbing internet knowledge, connecting with social medias, investing phones and computers, searching for victims to trap. In a matter of days, its net had grown large and was covering a big part of Brantford's network._

 _Unfortunately, that's when it was infected by the virus. The contagion was fast and strong._

 _The system was slowly crashing. The virus progressively merged with it, infesting the same parts of Brantford network which the game connected with._

 _The flashback became disjointed as Jumanji wrestled with the electronic invader, but they could witness the strange mutation of the virus. Like the support it grew on, it became highly adaptable till it gained a will of its own. It wasn't clear if it was just emulating a persona from already integrated characters of the game or really became conscious, but it surely wanted to escape, because as, it couldn't pass its basic programming, it knew it would inevitably destroy its host._

 _The virus searched inside Jumanji a way out and it found it in the materialisation process. The next thing it needed was a body to jump into. It investigated the badly damaged memory banks of the game to find hosts that had already been absorbed. The last victims of Jumanji were the perfect targets. So, it scanned the net searching for the four teenagers that last played. It had no difficulty to find them and infiltrated their phones and computers.  
Because of her intensive use of social media – even if it was far from what it used to be - Bethany became unfortunately the preferred target. She was connected long enough for the virus to observe and adapt to her. And, one day, it jumped in..._

 _The next fragmented memories switched on Bethany's point of view, as the virus had invested her mind. As long as she was awakened, it had almost no control on her, but in her sleep, the virus was quite active and was planning the next steps._

 _In between days of school memories, Spencer recognized the strange encounter he has with her the day he made peace with Martha. For a brief moment, when she touched him, the point of view switched on him. He understood that the virus tried to jump on him too but that didn't work as expected._

 _The last memories were merely just fixed images. They briefly saw Bethany's trek and the last night under the tent. Jumanji called her back, but the reintegration turned wrong as the game was already badly damaged._

− "She is the host not Oberon..." concluded Spencer in a shocked whisper as the last images vanished.  
− "Don't leave me..." Bethany said with a tremor in her voice. "I don't want to be there. I don't belong."

Finally, the dark patch on the stone disappeared. The light from the jaguar's eye was suddenly stronger. The green glow was pulsating in an accelerating rhythm. Jumanji was restored. Bethany's avatar glichted one last time before disappearing before their very eyes. Martha had clenched on her till the last second but soon her hands were just holding thin air.

− "No!" They screamed in unison.

Then, they heard it. The drums... It seemed to come from the ground itself. It sounded like a death sentence beat.

Spencer looked at Martha who was openly crying now. His girlfriend was turning into vapour and slowly being absorbed by the eye. The same thing happened to Fridge who disappeared without a chance to say a word.

Spencer looked at his hands. He was dematerialising too.

− "I'm sure you can save her!" He screamed to the statue. "I'm begging you!"

The last thing he saw was a flash of light and disappeared too.

* * *

 **Authors notes:**

I took a very long time on the exposition on this story, but the first chapters have clues of what's going on and what's going to happen. And I can tell you, I found this exercise quite hard to do for my first multi-chapters story in English :D. It took 6-7 months to write but I loved doing it!

Here are some guides:

\- The avatar research at the beginning is key for the story after.  
\- Bethany possessed during the night.  
\- The glitches behaviour on Spencer's phone and computer, and the use of sounds.  
\- Spencer's mother talking about the virus.  
\- Communication issues (see after).  
\- Bethany freeze framed in the avatar.  
\- The colours in Bethany's lair (see after)

The misleading:

\- The glitches and the drums : I use them to initially correlate the glitches with Jumanji. As the virus merged with the game, at first, it looked like that Jumanji was the virus.  
\- Van Pelt characteristics on Bethany's avatar.

 **The cloud/virus**

The pivotal point of the story was the virus that infected Jumanji. Its purpose is just what it is programmed to do : collect data, convert the host (encryption) and spread. The fact that Jumanji is a conscious entity made it evolve but it couldn't go over its own programming. Hence the damage it was doing to the game would ultimately be fatal and the virus would have died too in the process. That's why it needed desperately new hosts.

Corrupted Bethany:

It was pretty obvious, early on, that Bethany was in trouble but I wanted to distil the fact she was the vessel of the virus.

\- The colours. Blue was for the virus and green for Jumanji. That, I think, was quite clear :D. But I tried to induce that the virus was inside Bethany with those colours. She made herself comfortable in her lair with deactivated pieces of corrupted kernel (the blue braseros especially). In fact, she was lead by the virus trying to corrupt the pedestal she had activated from underneath but I didn't develop the subject afterwards.  
\- The time. For Bethany time passed longer. She lived a computer time period. As computer go faster than human brain she did a lot of things in a short among to time.  
\- The electric touch Spencer experienced was in fact the virus trying to jump onto him. It failed but left some side effects (I'll tell you more in the endings ^^).  
\- Also Bethany decline from activating the pedestals. She grow exhausted. Her avatar is badly damaged and corrupted. So, as each pedestal activated destroy the virus, the shell becomes more and more unstable and fragile. The only thing that hold it together in the end is Oberon's will...

Communication issues:

It was a subliminal intention from me :D. I wanted to induce that the process of understanding would be compromised for all the characters at some point.

First, its Spencer and Martha for human reasons. Then, the technical issues in Brantford due to the virus (original). Then, the glyphs that couldn't be read. Then, the misunderstanding of Bethany's intentions by the teenagers. And finally, Jumanji's intentions. (more to come after the endings ^^)

For me, Jumanji communicated its intentions through the narrative process of the game (the riddles, the environment, the quest, the pnj...). As it was scrambled by the virus it was unable to do it clearly this time. The only things it had control over was the graphic representation of the environment and it glitched badly so the protagonists had to decipher everything - as for you dear readers :D.

Jumanji:

I don't know the book(s), so I don't know how Jumanji is "personified" in it but my personal interpretation from the movies is that the game is an entity neither good or evil. But what happens inside can be terribly amoral. That's why I chose to display what could be so wrong to be in one other's body. So, I raised the voice of Oberon for that. Where the movie made fun of it, I took the serious tone about it :).

 **Next week preview :)**

Ok, as we're at the end now, next week, I'll post the two endings.

\- The bad ending is the real one and it's really not a fun one. I think you can already guess what's going to happen...  
\- The good ending is lighter and has a very light touch of Alex/Bethany. I can't help... I love them too much :-]. So yeah, this is where Alex come back.

Have a nice day and see you soon!


	15. Rewritten (bad ending)

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

I discovered that Jumamji is actually an illustrated book of 32 pages -_-. Maybe, it's really atmospheric but well... I thought it was a kind of fantastic story for kids like Bridge to Terabithia... ** sigh ** I guess that settles it for my discovery of the original material haha. I'll stick to the movies ;D.

JohnHammond : Because we are bad persons :). Joke aside, that's a good question. In my case, my answer would be : the real ending is where the message of the story lies. Here, it happens to be in the dark side of my story. To be honest, that's because I wrote this story at a dark time in my personal life and the story itself reflects some parts of the things that I was wrestling with. I chose to write a angst/drama thing of a comedy movie so... yeah I had a lot of 'fun' in this early 2018 :D. But ultimately, I'm an optimist person, and after writing this bad ending I felt the necessity to write something lighter, that's why the good ending exists. Lucky you :).

Well, that said, here is the first ending.

* * *

 **Rewritten**

When Spencer woke up, he felt a little bit off. He wasn't fully aware of his surrounding as he felt like he was still one foot in his dream. There was an annoying repetitive sound coming from his bed table. By rote, he smashed a hand on his alarm clock but, as the sound persisted, he was forced to open his eyes to address the problem. His phone was flashing intermittently at the rhythm of a strange muffled drum beat.

Spencer sat up and took the device. The light and the drums stopped at once. The screen glitched before turning black. The teenager started it again. Everything seemed fine, except one thing. The date. It was one week after the last thing he remembered.

He jumped in surprise as his bedroom door opened suddenly. His mum was in the frame, worryingly looking at him.

\- "I heard some noise. I guessed you had woke up." She said with a soft voice and a shy smile.  
\- "Huhu... I'm just a bit confused. Is my phone malfunctioning? The date seems wrong." His mother approached and sat on the bed next to him.  
\- "It's alright. They said you would be quite disoriented the first days." Spencer frowned.  
\- "What? They? Who?"  
\- "Don't get upset, honey. You and your friends had a traumatic experience. The doctors said you are fine, but your memory can be a little bit fuzzy. It will pass."  
\- "Traumatic..."  
\- "Please take your time. Don't try to rush it."

Nothing of what his mother just said made sense to him, but he tried to keep a neutral expression. She seemed genuinely worry about him and he didn't want to accentuate this feeling.

\- "I just don't get it." He said with a composed voice. "What happened?"

His mother hesitated for a moment but as he seemed perfectly calm she opened up.

\- "You and your friends Martha and Fridge had... disappeared last week during a pick nick." She was obviously searching for the good words. Spencer didn't interrupt her. "Two days ago, you were found unconscious in an alley behind your school." She waited for his reaction, but he just looked back at her with incomprehension. "The doctors said your all perfectly fine though." She repeated. To him, it looked more like she was trying to persuade herself.  
\- "Why don't I remember anything of the path few days?" He tried.  
\- "Whatever happened to you is memory locked, they said. It happens sometimes with traumatic events. Your memory would eventually come back later."  
\- "Even yesterday? This makes no sense."  
\- "I don't know, sweetheart. You were pretty groggy. Maybe it'll come back later. Give yourself time to recover." She had tears in her eyes. "I'm just glad you are here. I can't imagine losing you, like..." She didn't finish her sentence. She hugged him with all the strength and love of a mother who had almost lost her child.

When they separated, she was smiling but looked still a little bit emotional.

\- "I'm going to prepare breakfast, ok?"  
\- "Sure." He replied.

Spencer watched in disbelief his mother getting out of the room backwards, like he would disappear if she didn't look. After she left, he quickly grabbed his phone and texted Martha "Are you ok?". He didn't have to wait too long for an answer. She called him back.

\- "Yes, I am and you?" She was whispering.  
\- "Yes, I think so. Why do you talk like that?"  
\- "My parents are on my back. I don't want them to hear me."  
\- "What happened? My mother said that we disappeared. Do you remember anything?"  
\- "No... I just remember the pick nick and then blackout. I asked my parents, but they didn't say much..."  
\- "Same here..." I marked a short pause. "Anyway, I'm glad you're ok."  
\- "Me too..."  
\- "I have to go. I'll try Fridge and Bethany. Maybe they know something."  
\- "Bethany? Bethany Walker?"  
\- "Yes, the one and only. She must be back from her trip in the mountains by now." He replied. "My mum said that they found just the three of us, so that means she wasn't with us when 'the something we don't remember' happened. Maybe she can tell us something that our parents don't want to speak about."  
\- "Spencer... Since when do you have her phone number? And since when do you know where she is?"  
\- "Since Jumanji of course. You have her phone number too. You two have become friends."  
\- "Well, whether you remember more than I do, whether you are more confused than I am, but either ways I'm not friend with miss Instagram." She replied a bit dryly. "Sorry, I must go now." She added quickly. "I hear my mum coming."

She hung up, leaving him more confused than ever. He didn't wait a second and phoned Fridge. Unfortunately, it didn't help much, except to know that his friend was good too. He had quite the same strange conversation he experienced with his girlfriend.

\- "Man, I don't know what happened to us, but definitely you had a bonus on the side effects." Said the footballer after Spencer told him about Bethany.  
\- "Do you remember Jumanji?"  
\- "Sure, I do."  
\- "She was there with us. She ended in Oberon's body... The cartographer." As there was no response from his friend, he tried to give more details. "She was eaten by a hippo at the beginning. Does it ring any bells?  
\- "I'm sorry Spencer but I don't remember the same things as you."  
\- "This can't be... I mean you even teach her how to pee in a man's body. You were embarrassed as hell. How can't you remember that."  
\- "Hey, would you calm down please? What you are telling me is even crazier than the fact that you would become friend with her."  
\- "That's absurd. She was there. We couldn't have finish the game without her. Alex wouldn't be alive if she hadn't been there. Why am I the only one to remember that?"  
\- "I don't know man, but take it easy, would you? You seem on the verge of a nervous break."

Spencer wasn't keen to pursue the conversation as he was know quite upset and worried about these mysterious memory losses. He shortened his call and quickly looked at his contact list. His blood turned cold as he discovered that Bethany wasn't registered.

\- "No, no, no..." he mumbled. "I'm not crazy."

He searched in his messages any traces of conversation he could have had with her. Nothing... But then he found a couple of messages from a strange sender id: 7um4n71. The first one was strange verses that remind him of Jumanji riddles and the second one just said, _"help me"_.

Suddenly, he remembered something. It was just like a flash, but he saw Bethany touching his face and felt like an electric surge. The sensation vanished as quickly as it appeared. The next second, his phone vibrated. It was a text from 7um4n71. _"Thanks for trying. Don't forget me."_

A sneaky feeling of dread was slowly growing in him. With trembling fingers, he replied.

\- "Bethany, is that you?"  
\- _"Was."_ Came almost immediately the answer.  
\- "What happened? Where are you?"

He waited but there was nothing more. With apprehension he searched Bethany Walker on the internet. He found several articles about her recent disappearance in the north mountains. He read them all in almost a morbid interest. They were all telling the same story. The girl was trekking in the wild and she had vanished. Her materiel was found in a small glade, untouched even by animals. The searching dogs didn't find her scent anywhere around, nor near the village she had an anchor with. The kidnapping theory was preferred by the authorities even if there was no evidence.

\- "Spencer?" He jumped as his mother called him from the frame of the door. "Are you ok?" She asked when she saw his expression.  
\- "Bethany Walker. The news says she had disappeared too..." he replied, showing his phone.  
\- "Yes, poor girl..."  
\- "When?"  
\- "Last week. Before you were missing. Trekking alone in the wild like that... That was unwise at her age."  
\- "She was resourceful."

As he said that, he had like a resurgence of foggy memories of Bethany as Oberon talking around a strange table made of metal pieces. Then, he had very dense flashbacks and he felt sick. There was too much information at the same time. He didn't get it all, but he remembered clearly that it has something to do with Jumanji and something even darker.

His mother took his brief uneasiness for something else and looked at him with sympathy. She sat next to him.

\- "I didn't know you knew her that well. I thought she was not the kind of person you like to spend time with." Spencer felt heavy heart. Except for his new relation with Martha and Fridge, he hadn't tell his mother much about Bethany after they first came out of Jumanji, as his girlfriend was the one spending the most time with her. No-one except him seemed to acknowledge the fact that she was once part of their group.  
\- "She was... " He looked back at his phone with a sadly. Before, he could continue, his mother put a gentle but firm hand on his, hiding the screen.  
\- "Your memories are fragile. You shouldn't look at all those things right now. It could just confuse you more..." She took the phone and put it on his desk. Then, she stood up and moved toward the door. "Breakfast is ready." She added softly when she reached it.  
\- "I'm coming in a minute." He replied by rote.

His mother left the room. Spencer got up and followed her suit. Just as he reached the door, he looked back at his phone lying on his desk and spoke to it like it would hear.

\- "I won't forget you. Whatever happened to us ALL I would find out. I would remember. I won't let you become one of those anonymous disappearance. I promise."

He left too, joining his mother in the kitchen. As soon as the room was empty, the phone lighted up and glowed green. The texts conversation with 7um4n71 displayed on the screen. The next second, the messages were deleted. With them were erased the last remnants of the virus that infected Jumanji... and the last link Bethany had with this world.

###

Somewhere on the sand of an unknown beach, Jumanji materialized. The board game was identical at what it had always been, except for a tiny invisible part of it. The virus had been defeated but it had left something behind that the game couldn't erase: unlike all those who lost the game before, in his belly, a soul refused to vanish and was fighting oblivion.

Suddenly, its two-parted top broke open like something was trying to escape from the inside. For a moment, nothing happened, but then the drums resonated and on its central dark oculus, green vapour shaped letters appeared. It slowly formed sentences that no eye would witness but that the lost soul would hear.

With no malevolence but the cruelty of an inhuman and insensitive mind, as always, it spoke in rhymes.

 _Time will tame your temper.  
In the end, no-one will remember._

 _Like breath on a mirror  
or waves on the shore,  
memories fade, and history alters.  
The boy will forget like the others._

 _Don't listen to his futile promise  
and accept your own demise._

The game knew it had won as the crushed soul came silent in its entrails. The drums raged once more, and the two-parted top closed itself shut in a loud and dry clack. Then, the beat stopped.

Under the sun of the unknown place, Jumanji would wait for a new curious person to come. It would play with them the game of life, as traitorous and wild as reality could be.

THE END

* * *

** Hide behind my desk ** Yes, I killed off Bethany...

I guess the next question would be, WHY? The answer is : bad luck for her lol. From the characterisation, she was the perfect victim for the virus, hence for this ending, she is the one who disappears.  
To be honest, after I wrote the good ending, I hesitated a long time to post the bad one, cause I had the feeling that it was too harsh. But well, that's where I was going all along, so I assume it.

 **Authors notes:**

\- I used Jumanji as a mirror of life. That's a 'game' that plays you and challenges you. You don't know the rules in advance and sometimes you have to fight your way through. That's what meant the last exchange between Jumanji and the teenagers before they were sent back in the real world.

\- The defense mechanism the teenagers activated (the pedestals) are a sort of antivirus. It restored the corrupted data and destroyed the virus present in the programs. In this ending, if the vessel would have been Oberon, Jumanji would have let Bethany go. Oberon would just have reset as a playable character. But, as she is the vessel, there is a risk some part of the virus would survive in her. If it released her, the virus could spread into the real world. So Jumanji chose to absorb Bethany, like the one who usually looses the game. This way she becomes a program it can control. So, in a way, even if the actions of Jumanji are cruel to Bethany, it saved the world.

\- Normally, Jumanji would have released the teenagers the moment they entered but, in this ending, I consider the fact that the cleaning process of the game took a long time. So that's why there are release few days after.

\- I'm not sure I was successful on this path but I tried to connect the grieving process and the 'acceptance' (I don't find a better word, sorry) of death to the story.  
Oberon has the terrible experience to live his death twice. His fate is really horrible... Bethany fights her own death too and the moment she lost hope, she died.  
Jumanji rewrote the memories of Bethany in the teenagers' mind to ease the pain of the loss for them. It didn't quite work for Spencer due to the virus touch on him (that was the residual side effect of the virus on him), so he is the only one that will go through the path of grieving. In my point of view, those who won't remember are those who are to pity, 'cause even if memories hurt at first, by the time we are in peace with our pain, we can cherish those memories and keep those who died a little bit alive in our heart. For those who forgets, there is just emptiness.

Now, you can decide if Spencer will keep his promise to Bethany or if the game was right...

So, even if cruel, I hope you liked this ending :). Turn the page for the good and lighter ending!


	16. Restored (good ending)

**Disclaimer :** I don't own anything from Jumanji.

* * *

First of all, thanks to those who read and commented. Special thanks to JohnHammond ^^.

Here is the happy ending!  
Enjoy!

* * *

 **Restored**

When Spencer first opened his eyes, the world was a blur mass of spinning colours. It was like watching the landscape through a train window but so much faster. He could get a fixed point to look. He had to create one. So he moved his hands in front of him to block the dizzy vertigo . He looked in disbelief the strong hands of Bravestone slowly disappearing in a myriad of tiny squares to reveal his own frame underneath. The vision was uncanny but he didn't feel bad.

In a blink of an eye, everything changed around him. He found himself looking at his phone. There was the message from 7um4n71 - or Bethany - they all received before getting sucked into the game. _Help me!_ Spencer lifted his head. Martha and Fridge were there, looking at their phone. He called them but they didn't move. He realised then that there was no sound, no wind. He looked around and saw that they were indeed in the park and that everything was freeze framed. It was like the time had paused. Then, a shredding sound tore the silence apart. People around them began to move slowly first but backwards. Spencer understood quickly that the time was reversing. Things began to move faster and faster till he couldn't see. He felt nauseous as the world was spinning again.

He closed briefly his eyes and when he opened them again, he was in his room. His phone was still in his hand but the screen was black. He took a few seconds to reconnect with reality. Had Jumanji send them back to the past? He activated his phone to see the date. It was Saturday noon: the day before they went to the pick-nick. He frowned. How could it be?

He was about to phone Martha when he heard to front door bell ringing. Few seconds later, two feminine voices were chatting downstairs. Then, there were heavy steps on the stairs as someone was running up. His bedroom door opened on his frightened girlfriend.

− "Tell me this was not real!" she said out of breath.  
− "We were back in the game..." he said.  
− "Oh god!" she wailed. "Bethany..." she let herself fall onto the next chair.  
− "This can't be... We were sucked in later. Why are we there now?"  
− "I don't know."

Spencer was trying to think fast but it was hard to recollect all that happened. There was too much information to proceed.

\- "How did you come here so fast?" he suddenly asked.  
\- "I materialized near your house." replied the red-haired girl still partially in shock.  
\- "Were you supposed to be there?"  
\- "No, but it was not far from where I remember I was at that time."

Spencer jumped as his phone rang. Fridge was calling.

− "Are you ok? Good... Martha is with me... No just the two of us..." He put on the speakers, so Martha could join the conversation.  
− "Is Bethany with you?" She asked.  
− "No..." came the muffled response from the device.  
− "We're one day before our jump. So, if the game has released her, she must be somewhere in the mountains."

Martha took her phone and tried to dial her friend. No response. She looked worryingly at Spencer who was nervously passing his hand in his air.

− "I think I remember she said she had bad reception when she replied to my invitation for the pick nick. Did it ring?"  
− "Yes, but she didn't answer."  
− "We have to find her." Said Fridge through the telephone.  
− "Right but how? Asked the red-haired girl.

Spencer was pacing back and fork in the room. What could they do? They weren't even sure that Bethany had come back with them. She just had disappeared in front of them.

− "Guys are you still there?" asked Fridge as no-one said a word for a while.  
− "Yeah... I just try to find a solution. I mean we can just count on ourselves for this. Nobody would believe us if we told the truth." He sighed.  
− "Alex would believe." Said Martha.  
− "I don't want to deceive you but we don't know where he lives. Is he even in Brantford?" argued Fridge.  
− "I have his email. It's worth trying." Said Spencer rushing toward his computer. "I call you back, or if you want you can join us to my mom's house."  
− "On my way." just replied the footballer before hanging up.

Spencer made the message short for Alex, escaping the details but emphazing the urgency of the situation. The word Jumanji alone was a sufficient threat.

###

Fridge made it to the house before they got any reply. The teenagers exchanged about their experience of the last hours. It appeared quickly that, from the group, Spencer was the only one that was aware during the rematerialisation process but they couldn't find any reason why it happened that way. After a few moments, they were just waited nervously the reply of Alex or Bethany whose Martha was trying to reach regularly.

Finally, one hour later, the notification came and they were all relieved to read the quick message. _"I'm on my way. I'm picking you up at my father's house. 20Min."_

They all packed up in a rush and ran through Brantford to the rendezvous point. Soon after they arrived, the black break parked in the lane. Lowering the window, Alex invited them to get in the car. He looked genuinely upset. Spencer couldn't tell if it was because of the situation itself or any other reason. He silently sat in the front while his friends took place in the back.

− "Thank you for coming. It means everything." He said shyly.  
− "Just tell me where we are going." replied Alex a bit drily.  
− "The only place we can think of are the north mountains. Bethany was trekking."

Spencer dropped a name as he vaguely remembered where their lost friend was going. Alex entered it into the GPS. The man grimaced when he saw how long the travel would take but, without saying a word, he backed off and drive them out of the city.

For the first few minutes, the car was really silent. Everybody was in a seemingly lost in one's thoughts, but it was just a latent uneasiness. Alex finally broke the ice.

− "I'm sorry if I appear a little bit distant. I'm in a very uncomfortable place here. I had to lie to my wife in order to come. To be honest with you, I'm not sure she would understand and I don't blame her... And you know... that age difference, all that... It makes things a little bit awkward. But don't get me wrong, I would have come anyway... I would always come..." He added softly, almost for himself. Then, he spoke clearly again. "Please, tell me what happened."

As they had plenty of time, Spencer related in detail their odd journey. Alex' concerns grew as he learned more. For time to time, Martha was trying to call Bethany but her phone was still ringing empty.

− "When you contacted me, weeks ago about Jumanji, I was worried, but I couldn't even imagine something like that happening."  
− "Neither do I..."  
− "Oh my God! Bethany!" Suddenly exclaimed Martha in the back, cutting their conversation. She put her phone on speaker.  
− "Hey..." Replied their friend. Her voice was a little bit sleepy.  
− "Are you ok?"  
− "I don't know. I must have fainted or something like that. I just woke up and I have a hell of a headache. I saw you tried to call me several times. What's up?"  
− "Why doesn't she remember?" asked Fridge.

Spencer made a quick gesture to shush him.

− "Guys, you're there too?" Asked Bethany as she heard the footballer's voice.  
− "Yeah! They are with me. We're coming to pick you up. Where are you exactly?"

She gave them the name of her chalet without really thinking and then realised:

− "Wait a minute! Pick me up? What? How? And why do I think I'm not where I should be..."  
− "Hmm, Alex is driving us to you." replied Martha dodging the last part. Though, she was a big nervous for her friend's reaction about Alex. As expected, there was a long pause.  
− "Hi there..." Finally came the timid reply.  
− "Hi there..." Said Alex equally shy. "We're almost there. Around half an hour." He precised as casually as he could.  
− "Ok... But, is there something I should know?"  
− "Well, preferably we'll explain everything head to head."  
− "Ok..." She said. They could hear the doubtfulness in her voice. "I'll wait in front of the chalet. See you."

She hanged up. The small conversation with their friend released a lot of tension.

− "Has she lost her memory?" Asked Fridge.  
− "Reboot." replied Spencer.  
− "What?"  
− "Jumanji was restoring itself. It has reboot to a former state. As Bethany was almost a part of it, when it released her, she may have reboot to. She lost her memories from what she lived in the game."  
− "To be honest, I'm glad she doesn't remember. What a hell she's been through..." Said Martha.

###

Like she said, Bethany was waiting for them in front of the chalet. Fists on her hips, she was wearing short shorts and a large white T-shirt that was partially sliding on one of her shoulders. She had locked up her hair inside a large cap. They all got out the car and ran toward her.

− "I'm so happy you're here!" said Martha joining her in a hug.  
− "I'm happy to see you too girlfriend, but can someone tell me what's going on?"

She released her hair. She was unexpectedly dark brown with some lighter reflects. They all looked in chock at her. Alex just smiled and looked away.

− "Alex? What is it?" Asked Bethany, noticing his reaction.  
− "You remind me of a certain map expert." He just said, blushing a little bit. The others giggled. The ex-blonde frowned. She wasn't quite sure about how to react to that.  
− "I think that's a souvenir from Jumanji." Replied Spencer to her silent question. "We have a lot of things to tell you. A lot!"

She raised a quizzical eyebrow in a very Oberon's way. Spencer smiled. Either way the game had been kind to a long time lost soul or had just failed to correctly restore their friend, but Bethany had now a little piece of an ancient cartographer in her DNA. Was it just a hair colour and mannerisms or a more profound change? It was too early to tell. But their friend was back, safe and sound, and that was all that mattered.

###

Somewhere on the sand of an unknown beach, Jumanji materialized. The board game was identical at what it had always been.

Under the sun of this unknown place, Jumanji would wait for a new curious person to come. It had no other need nor purpose than to be played and for that it could wait as long as it takes.

THE END

* * *

I think I almost said everything that I needed in the last authors notes, so I won't be long there.

I hope you enjoyed the story. Personally, I think I'm done writing on Jumanji - till the next film I guess :) - , so maybe see you next year!  
Have fun!

 **Authors notes:**

\- I this ending version, Jumanji released Bethany repairing the damaged done by the virus as it could. As she was mixed up with Oberon, it used a little bit of him to complete the blanks ^^. Like the frog DNA in Jurassic Park haha!

\- The fact that Spencer was aware of the time reboot from Jumanji is because of the virus touch. This is the side effect for this version :).


End file.
